In the early months of a startup situation you don’t normally need to
worry about team building because everybody is really involved and
committed to pushing the business as hard as they can. Over time
however, as the number of employees start to grow, then you need to be
more focussed on motivation and team building.
Everybody is different, with differing backgrounds, expectations,
work ethics and work rates, so a key thing to watch is allowing these
differences to work together, but also to make sure that people don’t
rub each other up the wrong way.
If you read my blog you will know that I try hard not to take life
too seriously. I am a great believer in trying to keep a light-hearted
atmosphere at work, so here are my personal six top tips for keeping
your team motivated and looking forward to coming to work every morning:
Number One: Say thank you
I’m a great believer
in thanking people for doing their job, so long as they are doing it to
the best of their ability. When you have your head down, concentrating
on what you are doing, a pat on the back and a “well done” followed by a
“thank you” at the end of the day I think make a real difference.
Number Two: Keep it simple
I’m a sucker for
cliches; “keep it simple” and “one small step at a time” are favourites.
Make tasks achievable and rewarding by ensuring that you don’t give
people huge jobs that will take months to complete; break it down into
bite-sized chunks.
Number Three: Anticipate trouble
It’s my
experience that sometimes people get bogged down and can’t see the wood
for the trees, so either get them to talk to someone else about the
problem to give them a fresh perspective, or give them something totally
different for a day or two. This gives the subconscious time to think
about the problem and very often come up with a solution.
Number Four: Provide a decent place to work
I
started my business from home, and have striven to keep a homely
atmosphere ever since; we have a banter and we share the chores of
making the tea and washing up at the end of the day. I’ve fitted our
work spaces with daylight lighting so that working areas are brightly
illuminated and .cheerful; even on a miserable, dark, wet Monday
morning, the office is bright, warm and welcoming for everyone when they
arrive.
Number Five: Have a bit of fun
I love
cooking, so on an ad-hoc basis we’ll have a cooking or baking
competition. So far we have produced soup (the chocolate soup was
memorable!), curry, cake (don’t ask about the sugar cake!), sweet pie
and chilli. There is another one coming up, but they won’t let me
dictate the theme this time. And for the record - I have yet to win one
of the competitions, even though my entries are the best! And I do bear a
grudge!
Number Six: Celebrate success
When we achieve
something extraordinary in a month I’ll invite everybody out for a curry
at our favourite Indian restaurant. [Ed: Wish I lived near you.]
Above all, what I aim to achieve is to make my team feel appreciated
and valued and so far it has worked well for me in my growing business
as I don’t lose staff because they are dissatisfied, but rather because
they move on to roles that I can’t offer. And people who started nine
years ago are still with me; they are fulfilled and have developed way
beyond their own expectations in that time.
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