What motivates you at work?

Money does not necessarily motivate us to work harder so it might be time to look at the way people are rewarded.

Most performance systems are incentivized by pay; annual bonuses, target bonuses; pay increases and so on, and although people are driven by the potential to earn more, it is not a steady motivator.  As soon as the pay rise or bonus is received, the benefits of the increase usually last a matter of days until the productivity levels decrease, similarly in the lead up to an annual performance review, productivity may increase to prove ones worth.  Simply put, pay incentives (extrinsic rewards) are not a sustainable motivator. 

Times are changing and employees are looking for different motivators, such as whether they enjoy what they do; do they get on with the people they work with; do they have fun at work; do they receive recognition for a job well done; do they receive time off for extra time worked.  Allowing individuals to make choices on how they want to complete their work and allowing individuals to set their own goals, will motivate them, when they start seeing how they are meeting the goals that they set.

These intrinsic rewards help drive ongoing sustainable employee engagement which will lead to greater employee satisfaction, higher productivity levels, lower turnover, lower operating costs and increased profitability.