Page 24 - How to Motivate Every Employee

that managers and supervisors should help employees try new ways
of doing their work, of experimenting to make improvements, and
encourage and support them in taking those risks. And what if things
don’t work out as planned? That’s OK because it means they’re try-
ing new things. And sometimes things don’t work out. When employ-
ees are allowed to be human and make mistakes, the recognition for
having taken the risk is what they’ll remember.
Empower employees to take risks: Do this by allowing employees to
take an active role in decision-making that involves risk. As a leader,
you can set the example by trying new things. Demonstrate to
employees how to evaluate whether or not to take a risk. Look for the
critical issues, assess opportunities against objective criteria to deter-
mine the potential return, then decide whether the risk is worth it
and if the organization can stand behind whatever results.
Encourage risk-taking behavior as a learned behavior: Risk-taking is
something we learn over time, one step at a time. Remind your
employees that there is risk in much of what we do in our daily lives,
whether that’s getting married, having a baby, buying a house,
changing jobs, buying a new car, or moving to another city. The
more risks we learn to take over time and the greater those risks
become, the easier it is to take on a risky situation that has potential
and payoff for the entire organization and its people.

“Not failure, but low aim, is crime.”
—James Russell Lowell

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