How to Get Your Employees to Produce for You

by Ann Fry

Remember the saying, "Laugh and the world laughs with you, cry and you cry alone"? Does this describe you or your workplace? Let's take a look …

I'm going to be a bit unconventional here and suggest that if your employees are happy and have a balanced life, your company might be making the money it's capable of making. Perhaps you have never quite thought of happiness as a desired characteristic of your employees; but if I told you that happy employees produce more money for your company, would that be of interest to you? Well, I'd like you to reconsider — expand your paradigm to look at what it means to have happy and well-balanced employees.

Are your employees making you money? Or, are your employees costing you money? Is how your employees feel related to how they produce? And, can you do something about that? Answering these questions can be of great value to the future of your business.

"Laugh and the world laughs with you" …

Let's examine the value of having happy employees:

• they tend to be more appreciative of the moment
• they tend to take good care of themselves
• they have good balance in their lives
• they go with the "flow"
• they have positive and good relationships
• they have a spiritual component that brings joy and faith to their lives
• they have the ability to play and enjoy all that life has to offer
• they spread their time balanced between work, family, exercise and leisure.

Employees that are happy at their workplace:

• Contribute to the profits of your company
• Have your interests in mind because they know they are a valued and cherished part of your company
• Are more creative and show more motivation
• Work more cooperatively in teams as they help you push toward your company mission
• Are dedicated and loyal — "company people". They look forward to rising each morning, face the day with vigor and enthusiasm and pitch in wholeheartedly.

Are all your employees happy? If so, you are fortunate, because we all know how many employees just "work at their jobs", feeling insignificant and producing bare minimum. Happy employees feel important and produce more.

How can you create an environment where your employees will feel happy at work?

First and foremost, help them feel secure so that they have no desire to work elsewhere. Show them appreciation and treat them more like "family" than employees. When they feel good about their work, they feel good about themselves. They take better care of themselves, therefore using fewer sick days, fewer health insurance benefits; they are interested in physical and emotional wellness programs. They are interested in the products and/or services you offer — making it the best that your customers can receive. The advantage here is savings for you! "Cry and you cry alone" …

The alternative is unhappy employees. They have as their main goal in life to isolate, sabotage and stir up negativity amongst their peers. These employees will spend more time finding ways to shirk their responsibilities rather than doing what they were hired to do. The disadvantage here is lost income for you! You can show concern for the happiness level of your employees by including some of the following …

An Employee Assistance Program (EAP). Quite simply, an EAP is an employer-supported counseling program for employees. We all know that when an employee is burdened with personal problems, those problems can spill over onto the job, causing poor performance, irritability, poor relations with co-workers, etc. A company offering an EAP pays for employees to get professional short-term counseling in an effort to reach a resolution. Most large companies understand the cost effectiveness of having an EAP, but small companies frequently are concerned that EAPs are too expensive and non-productive. This couldn't be further from the truth. Even a very small company can provide this wonderful option for their workforce and their family members.

Provide adequate training opportunities to enhance employee attitudes, knowledge and morale. Support continuing education for personal development. Did you know that training's, such as stress management or team building can be fun as well as educational and make money for the company? When you engage your employees in educational, informational and fun training experiences, they return to their workspace refreshed and motivated.

Support your employees' needs to balance work with family time. Plan for ways to encourage family involvement, offer family days. Provide employees with time to spend with their families during important events in their lives? Limit the amount of overtime employees can expend, thus giving them ample time at home.

There are many things you can do to promote the "Emotional Wellness" of your employees. Appoint a "designated fun person" for your workplace. Such a person can learn to create playful ways to foster learning and to give incentives. Make sure your commitment is to making your workplace "employee friendly". It will go a long way towards increased productivity, thus increased profits.

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