Click your heels like Dorothy. You’ve always had the power to motivate employees

At the end of The Wizard of Oz, Glinda the Good Witch, tells Dorothy she had the power all the time to get home.

I get asked all the time by managers, employees, etc how to keep employees happy and motivated. I get asked by peers for my input on systems they are trying to develop/create to sell to clients seeking to increase employee motivation,

Now until someone comes up with a “one-size-fits-all” system, let me make life simple and tell you to click your heels together and walk over to your nearest HR Department, your own file cabinet or search the device from which you are reading this post.

Your employee records have your answers. Not some software. Not some metric. Your files. Go back to the very beginning and take a look at those notes you took during the interview process.

• What excited you about that employee?
• What opportunity did you see for that employee?
• What is that employee working on now as compared to what was promised and discussed back then?

You already have the power. You already know the answers. Get that person doing the things that were discussed and you’ll see employee motivation soar. Get that person doing the things that had you fearful of losing this person because your hiring process takes longer than childbirth (from conception to delivery).

And maybe watch this video clip to answer a few more things that might be challenging you:

Of course this MAD TV parody might be more like your workplace; getting pissed off when information is not used/shared properly. (Beware if you’re easily offended)