13. Step up reinforcement. In normal times, people’s motivation is naturally reinforced by their jobs — pride in their work, a sense of accomplishment, the satisfaction of contributing to a group effort. Unfortunately, these natural reinforcers diminish during hard economic times, just when they are most needed.

As a manager, you can compensate for the missing self-reinforcement by stepping up the amount of reinforcement you provide. In response to any good job performance, or even for a good effort, say, "Mary, I’m glad to see you got the analysis done even before the deadline. I know it was difficult, and I appreciate the extra effort you put in. This will help us keep the project on schedule." People need both positive expectations and positive feedback, of course, but during times of economic turmoil it’s important to keep motivation high by stepping up positive reinforcement of results — praise for a job well done.

14. Reinforce behaviors as well as results. Results — product quality, revenue from sales, attendance — are products of the organizational system. Behaviors, on the other hand, are individual actions such as scheduling tasks, completing an assembly, and planning sales calls. Natural reinforcement comes more from results than from behaviors, but in a normal economy, good behaviors generally lead to good results and are therefore self-reinforcing.

In shaky economic times, however, engaging in the right behavior does not necessarily lead to the desired results. Your people might be doing all the right things — calling on the most likely prospects, turning out high-quality products — but not getting larger orders, new customers, or greater revenues. To keep motivation high, you have to reinforce not only the results, which are in short supply, but also the positive behaviors that in normal times produce the desired results. In other words, you have to make up for the reduced number of naturally occurring reinforcers.

15. Be specific. Our tendency in praising people or their performance is to be general about what they do right but specific about the things they do wrong. "Way to go," however, is not very meaningful in reinforcing behavior and motivating people. It is especially unhelpful during economic downturns.

You can increase motivation by being specific in your reinforcement. If a person has done something well, don’t just say, "Good job" — tell her why it’s a good job. What, specifically, did she do that was praiseworthy? "Fran, your idea about posting referrals on our website for faster follow-up was a good suggestion. I think it’s already helping us reach our monthly sales targets. Good work!" In this way, you reinforce the specific behavior that will lead to better results, and you raise Fran’s motivation to find other ways to produce results.

About the Author

Tom Connellan is an Orlando, Florida keynote speaker regularly used by leading firms such as GE, Neiman Marcus, Dell, FedEx and Marriott to strengthen customer loyalty and leadership practices. When looking for a keynote speaker, Tom probably belongs on your short list of possibilities.