Understanding How Employee Motivation and Stress Correlate

Despite the nearly endless supply of articles on the topic, many business owners fail to recognize that employee motivation varies from industry to industry.

As a business owner, the end goal is always the same. You want loyal, motivated workers who do more than punch an online time clock at 9 am and leave at 5 pm.

The question of how to get there is what differs based on your business’s industry. Most business owners mistakenly believe that employee motivation is a product of financial incentives.

The more money you offer, the more motivated your staff is. Surprisingly this is not the case. Our brains are not wired to be motivated by money. Rather, they are wired to take action based on stress responses. Your number one responsibility is to mitigate employee stress levels.

First and foremost, set clear and actionable goals. Employee stress levels have been shown to increase when there is a feeling of uncertainty about where the company is headed, the assigned tasks, or the method with which their success will be measured.

Offering a clear picture of your company’s goals, your employee’s tasks, and all evaluation criteria automatically reduce stress and increase motivation. Once you have taken the needed steps to ensure a clear understanding of your company’s vision, look for more meaningful incentives to offer.

These can include equity, a faster career path, an increase in training, and educational opportunities. While these rarely show up in an employee’s paycheck, they go a long way towards ensuring the employee feels valued, appreciated, and cared for.

All of which will lower stress, increase passion, and result in a staff that is more loyal than you could have ever imagined.

Once you’ve managed to enact some worthwhile incentives, visit FingerCheck.com to find out how to streamline your time clock software.