Boost Small Team Motivation Without Team Building or Money?

Many believe that keeping teams motivated takes a lot of time, effort, and money. Although it may ring true for the first two aspects, the third is not necessarily accurate. With minimal to no budget, you can keep your employees inspired, productive, and eager to excel.

You can boost motivation for small teams without team-building or money by being loud and vocal with your praises on big and small wins. Encourage autonomy in your team and make your space conducive to working. Maintain a good work-life balance so your employees see purpose in their work. 

In this article, I’ll share different ways to boost your employees’ self-esteem and motivational levels without breaking the bank or having your employees endure one of those awkward team-building events that most of us hate.

I’ll also give tips on making your workplace more welcoming and being generous and impactful with your praises. I’ll also discuss some misconceptions about team motivation and explain how being flexible can make your team feel more valued. 

How Do You Motivate Small Teams?  

You motivate small teams by ensuring they always feel appreciated and respected. Make it a point to value their opinions, suggestions, and ideas to help them feel like significant contributors to the team. Allow them some independence so they can fully utilize their skills and talents.

It can be challenging to keep a small team motivated, considering the limitations that come with a fewer headcount. Especially when budget may be a primary concern and usual team-building activities are out of the picture. Besides, monetary incentives aren’t always reliable in enhancing team motivation and achieving desired results. 

Yet, with some creativity and ingenuity, you can keep your team inspired more engagingly without breaking the bank. Here are some things you can try:

Go All Out on Recognition

Recognizing your employees for a job well done is crucial to keeping them motivated. It may seem like a simple gesture, but it affects them in many ways. When you praise them, they’ll feel appreciated and respected, motivating them to continue improving and go beyond their comfort zone.  

Recognizing your employees for a job well done is crucial to keeping them motivated.

Make sure to recognize small and big wins. Avoid reserving your praises only for significant moments and impressive gains. Make sure to pay attention to small efforts and day-to-day achievements because these bring the team closer to the set goals. 

More importantly, specify what task or behavior you appreciate rather than offer generalized statements, highlighting how this has positively affected the organization. A simple “Good job!” or a pat on the back won’t cut it. Your approach must be more tangible for employees to feel genuinely valued and appreciated. Consider these ideas:

• Recognition wall. Create a space in your office to post employee achievements, whether in print or through photos. Place it in an area easily accessible to everyone so that featured employees are well-acknowledged. Be loud and artistic when posting on the wall. I personally don’t like this idea at all, but I do know that it works for some companies, so I honor the experience and keep it on the list!
• Praise publicly. Recognize your employees in front of their peers for maximum effect. You can do this during meetings or gatherings where everyone can recognize individuals for a job well done. It is once again vital to be extremely specific to avoid people thinking you are favoring certain individuals.
• Send emails. In today’s digital world, almost everything is uncovered, announced, or discussed via email or newsletters. Why not commend your excelling employees via these mediums? This way, everyone in the organization is aware of their accomplishments. Make sure this is an add-on to the one-on-one feedback that should be the core of your leadership.

Encourage Autonomy

When leaders micromanage, they’re inadvertently sending a message to employees that they cannot be trusted with making decisions, devising strategies, or formulating plans of action to meet goals. This quickly affects the team’s motivational levels and makes them feel insecure and frustrated. 

Instead, give employees space to thrive. Allow and trust them to make decisions and devise their own strategies to accomplish tasks. This way, they can maximize the use of their skills and experiences. They’ll gain self-confidence and eventually step out of their comfort zone. Giving them some independence will help them achieve their full potential. 

Remember that you shouldn’t be the sole decision-maker when you’re leading and managing a team. Avoid being a “helicopter boss” and allow your employees to make suggestions and share their ideas. Rather than being a mere dictator, invite your team to brainstorm and share their thoughts. This simple gesture will make them feel valued and notably affect their morale.

Be Flexible

Always remember that keeping a good work-life balance is crucial to keeping your employees motivated and grateful for being part of your team. Don’t expect them to make work their main priority. Keep in mind that there are other vital aspects in their lives that they need to focus on, too. 

Give your employees opportunities to spend their valuable free time in pursuits that matter to them. It could be about giving a particular employee flexible work hours because she’s a single mom and needs to take her kids to school every morning. Perhaps you can keep weekends work-free and avoid reaching out to employees during these days to allow them to spend uninterrupted time with their families.

Give your employees opportunities to spend their valuable free time in pursuits that matter to them.

Create a Positive Work Atmosphere

Make your office a place employees want to be in. This doesn’t mean you must invest in expensive office chairs or gadgets. Simple strategies to help make your space more inviting and conducive to work will make a huge difference. 

The benefit of running a small team is that you can design the workplace so it specifically fits your team. Avoid general trends that don’t suit your people!

The benefit of running a small team is that you can design the workplace so it specifically fits your team.

Here are some tips:

• Clear your windows. Make sure you have unobstructed views from your windows to the outside. This gives the illusion that your space is bigger and will not make it seem so tight. Letting natural light in will also help perk your team’s spirits up.
• Buy plants. Greenery is always refreshing to see. Stationing plants in corners, shelves, and empty spaces will make your office space seem homelier and more attractive. 
• Use artwork. Place artwork on walls and stands to give your space more character. 

Key Points	Description
Go All Out on Recognition	Recognize and appreciate employees’ achievements, big or small, to make them feel valued and motivated to improve and exceed expectations.
Encourage Autonomy	Trust employees to make decisions and create their own strategies, empowering them to utilize their skills, gain confidence, and reach their full potential.
Be Flexible	Support work-life balance by accommodating personal needs and commitments, such as offering flexible work hours or work-free weekends, which helps employees prioritize their well-being and maintain motivation.
Create a Positive Work Atmosphere	Foster a positive work environment by creating a space that aligns with the team’s preferences and values, making employees feel comfortable, engaged, and motivated to be productive.

Increase Motivation, From Low to High

The bottom line in keeping employees engaged is increasing low to high motivation. Peak engagement and motivation ensure boosted efficiency and productivity. With more tasks accomplished promptly, the team can systematically move closer to attaining goals.

Misconceptions About Motivating Small Teams

Keeping a small team motivated is challenging, and you can quickly fall into traps where you’ll unknowingly destroy your employees’ spirit and enthusiasm about work. There are many fallacies surrounding this, and it’s best to avoid them so frustration and feelings of disparity don’t sidetrack your team.

Here are some so-called motivational tactics to avoid:

Raising Your Voice

This is one of the quickest ways to demotivate employees. If you yell at them when they commit mistakes or when things don’t go as planned, you’ll make them feel disrespected and embarrassed, especially if you do this in front of their peers. 

This is not to say that you shouldn’t call out bad behavior or point out errors and deficiencies. What matters is how you say it and when. You’ll make more of an impact if you treat your employees respectfully. Ask them about what happened, how they could’ve done things differently, and what they plan to do to correct the situation. You can then give tips and advice.

Assume that there is something you don’t know of that explains what happened, and be curious instead of judgmental.

Assume that there is something you don’t know of that explains what happened, and be curious instead of judgmental.

Positively dealing with crises sends the message to your team that you trust in them even if they sometimes falter. You know they’ll learn from their mistakes and always strive for excellence. This lets them know that you’re on their side, always willing to work hand-in-hand with them in finding solutions to problems.

Issuing Threats

Some leaders resort to threats to scare their employees into performing better. However, this often backfires, especially if you fail to follow through because it only makes your team resent you. 

Leading and managing a team means being on their side. Positivity in the face of adversity shows your team that you believe in their abilities and understand the difficulties that come with the job. Adopt a corrective stance during difficult times rather than being accusatory and antagonistic.

Positivity in the face of adversity shows your team that you believe in their abilities and understand the difficulties that come with the job.

Here’s a quick but insightful video where Simon Sinek explains how as leaders, we should first evaluate whether or not we’ve created an environment that inspires our employees.

Final Thoughts

Boosting motivation for your small team requires creativity and ingenuity. There are many simple ways to keep your employees inspired, so strive to get to know them more personally to uncover what tactics will work. 

Making your employees feel respected, trusted, and valuable is the key. Remember that they have lives outside the workplace, so it’s important not to expect them always to prioritize work. This helps keep employees motivated to push forward. Also, aim to maintain good work-life harmony, so your team can.