Gold stars. Rewards. Praise.

Are you rewarding enough gold stars for your team’s successes or getting the gold stars you need to feel valued?

Gold stars. Rewards. Praise. There’s a reason people strive for these — they feel good! Even as adults, we’re striving to fill those kindergarten star charts. Part of building community is understanding how to keep people motivated and happy.

Do you know what makes your colleagues and yourself feel inspired?

Do you know how they like to be rewarded?

After you’ve built a great team and taken time to find out who they are as a person, the next step is to keep the team buzzing with excitement and energy. It is important to know what your teammates are passionate about and share your passions too (even if it takes being vulnerable). I like to ask my team what are three things that they love to do most, and what are three things they like to do least. When building a team, it is important to include a diverse group of people who’s answers to those questions are different. It’s like building a puzzle — you want to have pieces fit together in a complementary way. That exercise also helps me see where someone would like to grow and what they’d like to do more of, so when an opportunity arises, I know who would be most excited about it.

In the past, I was given the opportunity to work on a passion project at work. My manager gave me the ability to think outside of my day to day tasks and encouraged me to build something I was really excited about. I had the time and freedom to work on something that was tied to my other projects, but it was also an idea I came up with on my own and saw through to completion. While working on that passion project, I felt so energized and inspired to take every day in stride — no matter what I was working on.

I spend time thinking about thoughtful ways to reward my team. When someone has gone above and beyond, I like to show my thanks by connecting to their personal hobbies… something to show my appreciation for their hard work.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on motivation and rewards.

If you’re a manager, How do you like to give your employees “gold stars”?

If you’re on a team, how do you encourage your coworkers?

Please comment below or reach out to me on LinkedIn — I’d love to continue this conversation directly.

Until next time -

Cheers, “Q”