10 Minute Guide to Motivating People

Recently I trained a new puppy. All the books I read claimed that, in reality, it's the owner who gets trained not the dog. That's also somewhat true about motivating. This book doesn't tell you what the people who work for you should do; it tells you how, by changing the approach you take, you can inspire your people to respond with more positive and productive behavior in the workplace.

Motivating people involves an interesting mixture of common sense and a deeper understanding of what makes people tick. It's an orchestration of awarding financial compensation, paying compliments, and challenging people to excel. And it's an art that, when performed well, is the hallmark of a good manager.

The difficult and delightful reality is that, as a manager, you work with different types of people. No one magic key opens all their motivational doors. But if you can learn to spot some of the tendencies of different personality types and then pay attention to those signs in dealing with people, alone or in a group, you'll become a better motivator.

In this book, you'll find lots of tips that will help you keep your employees' interest in their jobs alive and well. My guess is that you'll read it through once or twice, find several good ideas to inspire you, then put it on your bookshelf and pull it out now and then to remind you of some specific techniques you can use to address difficult employees or challenging morale situations. After all, an ongoing commitment to being a motivating manager is the real key to motivating people.

Contents

• Introduction ..... vii
  
• Chapter 1: What Motivates People? ..... 1
  
• Chapter 2: Take Care of the Basics ..... 13
  
• Chapter 3: Providing a Great Environment ..... 27
  
• Chapter 4: Giving Them What They Need to Succeed ..... 39
  
• Chapter 5: Go Team! ..... 49
  
• Chapter 6: Throw a Party! ..... 63
  
• Chapter 7: Give a Gift ..... 75
  
• Chapter 8: Getting Out of the Office ..... 85
  
• Chapter 9: Just Go Home! ..... 95
  
• Chapter 10: Recognizing Achievement ..... 105
  
• Chapter 11: Involving People in Innovation ..... 117
  
• Chapter 12: Providing Challenge ..... 125
  
• Chapter 13: Share the Success! ..... 135
  
• Index