6 Ways to Keep Your Employees Happy

24 Aug 6 Ways to Keep Your Employees Happy

Are your employees happy? Are they motivated to keep working hard after two long years of stress and uncertainty? 

Unhappy employees can be dismayed for a number of reasons, including stress, a sense of being overworked and loss of interest in their jobs. This can lead to turnover as people try to find greener pastures elsewhere. 

Are you looking for ways to make sure your employees are happy and motivated? Here are a few things to consider. 

• Prioritize work-life balance. We have obligations to our jobs and we have obligations to our friends and families. It can be really difficult to try and honor those responsibilities and workers can easily feel like talking about things going on at home might not be professional or welcomed while on the clock. Instead, make it clear that your employees can take the time they need to be available for their families without work interfering. Remind them that they have vacation or personal time to take as they want or need to, no strings attached. Your employees’ home lives are important, as are the people they value. Pledge not to give them any unexpected overtime if at all possible. Let them know their time away from work will be respected. 

• Improve communication. Not everyone wants to share their information or talk through emails. Some people prefer in-person conversations or phone calls. Adopting an open-door policy for employees to come to you when they need to — for advice, with ideas, for feedback, etc. — shows compassion and that you care for your team. Improving communication overall helps keep everyone on the same page and focused on the same things, with everyone pulling and working together toward the same goal. 

• Create opportunities for advancement. Some employees want to climb the proverbial ladder, while others want to make sure their skills stay sharp or add to their abilities. All of this is possible without losing people! Find ways to encourage people to learn new things, whether that’s through a mentorship or job shadowing program or by finding courses people can take to advance their understanding of the skills needed in their jobs. Investing in your team can pay big dividends — a highly skilled team means your company can do even more without having to add new members. 

• Offer recognition and praise. It’s so easy to think that people know when they’re appreciated. More often than not, that’s not true. Feeling overlooked, under appreciated or like they’re being taken for granted can push employees right out the door. It doesn’t take much to show thanks and show gratitude for what your team has done and how hard they work. Call people out by name in meetings to shine a light on their great work, or buy them lunch in the form of a pizza party or cookout. Gift cards or other little tokens of appreciation are great surprises too. Just let them know you see and value them and their work. 

• Encourage them to celebrate each other. Building on that idea, create a system where people can praise their teammates for doing a good job, being supportive, having great ideas or anything else worth cheering on. The ability to lift each other up, in a formalized way that has your support, approval and endorsement shows that you know your team is great and worth cheering on as well. Also, you can’t know everything that goes on all the time — this is a great way to keep apprised of your strongest employees. 

• Encourage breaks. The idea that people are supposed to work nonstop from the time they come in until they leave for the day is not only stressful and labor-intensive but unhealthy. Breaks are good! Taking a lunch break lets your employees fuel up for the rest of their day; walking away from their work for a few minutes every hour or so, to get water or use the bathroom or just to change their scenery, can help refresh the mind. All of this contributes to increased productivity, less stress and better health. 

Happy, healthy and motivated employees are ones that aren’t looking to take their skills, abilities and knowledge elsewhere. It’s worth investing in your employees’ happiness and well-being to keep your company competitive and well-staffed. 

If you’re looking to add to your team, call LeadingEdge. We have great candidates who are eager and ready to get to work quickly, whether you’re looking for full- or part-time, temporary or permanent employees. Contact LeadingEdge today and let’s get to work.