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How to nurture that fire in the belly, and spread the spark to your staff
By Wendy Kaufman
February 2013
In the economy’s "new normal", we small business owners have to be our own motivators. Further, while it’s great to get external feedback–as in "Hey, you did a really good job!"–we’re not a culture that encourages that.
That means that as an entrepreneur, you have to rely on internal motivators related to what you’re doing well and what you need to change.
The first question
Business owners are motivated by our own passion 90 percent of the time. Examining our motivations in detail may be a more cerebral and introspective activity than many people want to do, but the time invested will pay off.
When I ask business owners what motivates them, what I don’t hear is, "I want to buy a Ferrari" or "I want to make a million dollars." Yes, people want to take care of their families, to pay college tuitions, but money is rarely a main motivator. Something larger is at work.
We see this with doctors. They don’t just want to save someone’s life, they want to save a father so he can see his daughter get married. Many entrepreneurs will say that what’s profoundly satisfying is the feeling that they’re changing the world in their own way—giving people jobs, fixing a problem, creating a better environment.
In the day-to-day picture, ask yourself: What’s going to motivate me to do my best today? It may help to keep a journal to see what works. For some, motivation may come from going in an extra hour early to get things done, knowing you’ll accomplish what would take four hours to do if the staff were present.
For other people, motivation may come from cleaning out their offices, really organizing themselves and their space. One of my colleagues recently deleted all the emails in her in-box—she had 20,000 of them!—because knowing she could never catch up on them was profoundly de-motivating.
I’m a big believer in giving yourself "booster shots." Every night before I go to bed, I read a motivational story about a business owner who made it. I’ve also created a playlist on my iPod that has only motivational songs—everything from Louis Armstrong’s "What a Wonderful World" to the theme song from Chariots of Fire to "Man in the Mirror" by Michael Jackson. Go to YouTube and search for motivational TED tapes. You can make time for one that’s 5 to 10 minutes long and re-charge for the day.
I also like to do what I call "getting back to the bones." I now have 1,000 trainers, and some of them only know my name, so I get out in the field to meet them. That provides a boost not only for the trainers, but for me.
Keeping the staff stoked
Motivating yourself and motivating your employees are intertwined. Seeing your staff pumped up and going strong is so energizing for an owner. Here’s your dream, and it’s not just you carrying it out—everyone is helping get to the goal.
Motivation can and should take the form of things like thank-you lunches and fun events such as movie nights, "take your pet to work" day or a healthy cooking class. Ask your employees what they would consider fun.
Beyond that, let your employees become part of your business world. Because here’s the number one motivator for any employee: He or she wants to be listened to. Everyone wants to be "invited to the party."
In business school, they’ll tell you that you shouldn’t share the private doubts and burdens of an owner, but I don’t agree. The pressure and loneliness of being the only one making decisions is draining. So I appropriately share everything, including books and numbers, and I tell the staff, "Here’s what I’m thinking and here’s what I’m worried about."
Then I say, "Tell me what we can do to solve the problem" which is the best, most motivating question you can ask. It is actually empowering for the staff. That doesn’t mean we’re going to agree all the time—yes, we’ll go head to head on an issue and challenge each other. In the end, though, working through conflict will make us a more cohesive team.
For an entrepreneur, it’s important to make the distinction between burnout, lack of motivation and simple exhaustion. Maybe you’re just tired! Do something to re-charge—take an exercise class, take a long walk or an afternoon off, take a vacation, and see if that changes your mood. More often than not, you’ll find that the fire within is still lit. And the great thing is, you get a do-over every day.
Wendy Kaufman is the founder and CEO of Balancing Life’s Issues, a training company for businesses committed to supporting employees’ work/life balance. She can be reached at wendy@balancinglifesissues.com
© 2013 Citigroup Inc. Citibank, N.A. Member FDIC. Citibank with Arc Design is a registered service mark of Citigroup Inc.
