What drives us to work each day? What do we look forward to when we get there? Is it the work, the people, the place, the money, the gratifying effect or then beyond? What keeps our momentum ticking day after day, month after month and year after year till we decide to move out of that place and move on? What are the turn-ons and the turn-offs? Are they important in the work-life?

Motivation at work is different to different people. Defined simply, motivation is the stimulus, the incentive that we look forward to at workplace. To some this stimulus is the money, to others it is someone special at work, to some recognition, to some the food/place; to others it is the circle of friends/the people, to still more it is loyalty towards the organization and yet others just the work that becomes the driving force. As we gear up on a Monday morning, close in on the tie or take the eye-lining brush off the eyes, it is these varied thoughts that run through our head driving us to work.

Organizations do everything they can so that they can expect employees to turn up at work all charged-up and perform at above expected levels. Expectations surmount with more efforts that organizations put into keeping the employees pepped up, so that they are able to keep pace with deadlines, work with peers in a team and still keep the error rate at its lowest.

The mismatch in the give and take between the employee and employer happens because one, people come from different strata of society, with different needs in their respective lives and hence are at different needs drive their motivation. Two, they expect different things out of the work place, basis these needs and so one cannot generalize that all people at all times are motivated in the organization with the common motivational gimmicks. Study shows that if 65-70% of the workforce is motivated, it rubs off on the others as well due to the ripple effect but the vice-versa can also be true. Organizations try all tricks up their sleeve to ensure that they are able to keep their 70% workforce motivated. The challenge in the conventional HR system was to minimize absenteeism post the pay day to determine the motivation level in the organization. Today we would measure attrition rate.

I would not be out of whack if I say that the drivers of motivation have been refined by the system, by the youth of today. Today’s youth are energetic and highly motivated to begin with and hence motivating them needs more creative thinking than the traditional route. Today’s employees are driven by passion to succeed, to make it big, to live a fast and gratifying life, to be recognized and hence are self driven.

Perhaps they are motivated when you throw at them the challenges that give them the feeling of wow! They are motivated when they able to utilize their skills to the optimum, when you facilitate their efforts to prove a point at work and give them the credit and recognition for the same. Employees also get a kick from the trainings that the organization provides to them to upgrade them in the system.

The list to keep your workforce motivated can go on albeit you have to get creative in the times of today. Finally keeping a larger workforce happy is like finding a common thread to tie them with. Nothing beats the fact that we all come to work with a dream, a goal.

As an organization it is important that you align the organization goals to individual dreams putting the organization in gear five and YESSS! You will zoom far ahead of the competition.