Organizational psychologists have long confirmed the correlation between employee morale and productivity, staff turnover rate, and profit margin. If your employees are demoralized and dispirited, it’s imperative that you find a way to improve their morale. Here are five simple things you can do to motivate your team.
- Build self-worth. One way to build employee self-worth is to make them feel that they’re part of something bigger. Explain what exactly you’re doing as an organization and how they can help you achieve your goals. And although it’s easy to get lost in the daily grind, take the time to acknowledge their efforts and show your appreciation. In addition, encourage them to come up with suggestions and solutions to problems. Involving everyone in the decision making process is a great strategy, which boosts employee morale and creates a healthier work environment.
- Get creative. There are many things you can do to create a more positive work atmosphere. For instance, repainting your business can improve the look and feel of the entire space, which will have a positive impact on employee morale. You can also replace cubicles with an open seating plan; improve the break room by adding a TV and offering free drinks and snacks; replace uncomfortable furniture with proper office ergonomics; create themed conference rooms; add a few plants and quirky pictures; and decorate for holidays. To help you implement the previous point as early as possible, encourage your employees to come up with original ideas for decorating their own spaces.
- Choose the right colors. As surprising as it may seem, a new coat of paint can spark high employee morale. If you’re bored of seeing the same plain white walls every day, your employees probably feel the same way. Therefore, it’s time to take action and hire a team of professional painters, who can help you update and refresh the look of your business. Before selecting a color palette, make sure that you check the colors that should be avoided when painting a business so you don’t go overboard. In addition, try to use some variety in your color scheme. By painting halls and stairways a different color or choosing contrasting shades, complementary hues, or bold accents in the same room, you can easily relieve monotony and keep your employees alert.
- Have some fun. Organizing team-building events, in-house competitions, play days at amusement parks, casual Fridays, or providing small rewards, such as movie tickets and coins for the vending machine, as recognition for a job well done can brighten your employees’ days, improving their morale and attitude toward their work and coworkers.
- Let them vent. An unhappy or angry person needs to vent. Once he’s done that, he’s ready to listen. If your employees are unhappy, meet with them individually or in small groups and encourage them to talk about the challenges they’re facing. Letting your employees talk openly about their problems is one of the few things you can do to boost their morale instantly. Not only will they feel better; you’ll also know what you need to do to prevent small issues from becoming big problems that are difficult to fix.
Unfortunately, there’s no magic formula for increasing employee morale. However, these five points can help you make your employees happier, create a positive work environment, and get things done more efficiently. To find out more about how our experienced painters can help you improve your business curb appeal and the mood of your employees, give us a call at (904) 641-4800.
