Beyond Employee Engagement: Freeing Employees to Find Inspired Focus
by Lois MelbourneWhat inspires you? What grounds you, gives you the feeling of appreciation?
One of the greatest gifts my late mother gave me is the ability to appreciate many things and to be open to inspiration from many sources. When I have to tackle a tough or especially detailed job, I try to find something that inspires me to the proper mindset. If I can find inspiration in a natural view like the sea, sky, leaves, a content cat, it helps ground me. I can then deal with the tough stuff, like a workforce planning proposal for a client, a response to a tricky succession planning issue, a presentation for an analyst to show how solid the business is and how uniquely we approach our dedication to our clients.
Another place I find inspiration and grounding is music. I have one great musical talent – I play a mean iPod®! Yes, music certainly can tame the beast, lift the mood, add a bounce to the step, and focus the mind. From classical to hip-hop, heavy metal to pop, music calls to each of us.
Truly engaging employees takes more than career development and employee recognition programs. These, as well as domain education and succession planning, are key ingredients in motivating and developing employees – within the standard corporate practice. They must exist in all organizations, but you should also infuse your corporate culture (and check this article on Zappos for a unique corporate culture) with individuality, personal as well as professional creativity – and just that right touch of quirkiness.
Obviously, blinking lights and a loud radio aren’t what you want in the way of personalizing a workspace. Don’t be afraid to give employees the freedom to view family photos added to the desktop wallpaper, read cartoons pinned to their bulletin board, or listen to music on their iPod® at work – LET THEM. It may be their best moment of inspired focus.
Cheers,
Lois
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Lois,
I agree that inspiration is so important in whether or not we are truly engaged in activities and work. Without inspiration, all our accomplishments are hollow. It is an interesting concept of how corporate culture can inspire employees. Love the examples you gave. Very interesting post!
Trish
Thank you Trish. If you have favorite tips for accepting the inspiration of employees, I look forward to seeing them on the http://hrringleader.wordpress.com/ blog.
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I am glad you enjoyed the article. I hope you find more things you can relate to here. My customers and employees are inspirations for a lot of great topics. My twitter friends and blog readers bring even more to the table.
cheers,
Lois