Inspiring your team during the holidays

With the New Year fast approaching, it’s an ideal time to evaluate your teams’ performance from the past year and inspire your employees to kick-start 2015 with a bang.

As the days grow shorter and the weather gets colder people look forward to quality time with family and friends during the holidays.  This is the perfect time for you to take advantage of the down time to reflect on your team’s performance over the past year and plan ahead for the new one.

Here are some tips for ending the year on a positive note:

1. Encourage one last burst of energy: Consider some creative ways to inspire your team to work at their peak level during December.  Fun incentives and prizes will help to keep your employees engaged and motivated ahead of the festivities.
2. Reflect and review: The end of the year is the perfect opportunity to think about what your staff members have achieved.  Having formal employee reviews will give you the chance to acknowledge outstanding work and discuss any areas that need improvement.  Establishing two-way communication is also important, allowing a fresh start for 2015. Open conversations help to build a sense of trust and confidence that will motivate your team to perform their best.
3. Reward success: Positive reinforcement works wonders for staff morale and will help to get the most out of your employees. Make an example of those who have excelled and think about establishing a reward system for recognition of hard work.
4. Goal-setting for the year ahead: Setting objectives in December will allow your folks time to think and give them clear goals well in advance of the New Year.  Establishing targets should be mutually understood to ensure your employees are comfortable with what’s expected of them.  It’s equally important to take your workers’ personal goals into account; ask them what they hope to achieve with their career next year and find ways to support and motivate them to fulfill their goals.
5. Encourage best practice sharing: Have you thought about sharing the good work that’s been done over the past year? Best practice sharing sessions are a great way of bringing teams together and passing on in-house expertise and knowledge…one team learns from the successes of another!

Ultimately, inspiring the team needs to come from you!  By leading and maintaining the highest standards of professionalism while communicating openly, you can inspire your team to end 2014 on a high!

How do you motivate your employees during the holidays?

Dave Baney is the founder and CEO of 55 Questions, LLC.  We work with successful top executives with a driving ambition to crush their competition.  We help CEOs and Entrepreneurs improve alignment, communication and accountability throughout their organization. www.55Questions.com

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