Your staff are the lifeblood of your company. Without them, nothing would get done and you’d be hard-pressed to even sell a product. This is why it’s important to bring out the best in your employees.

When someone joins your company, they might have starry-eyed impressions on what working for your company will be like. Unfortunately, it rarely ever meets their expectations and they’ll probably be demotivated a month or two in.

So to help you motivate your staff, here are a couple of tips.

Give your employees important jobs

Whether it’s attending a tradeshow or designing something valuable like a business logo, it’s important to give your employees leadership roles now and then to help them feel like they’re a part of your business.

The idea is to give them specific tasks that will affect the company as a whole. They need to feel responsible for your business if you want them to grow attached to working for you, and this is only possible if you’re willing to take risks.

Celebrate with your employees

With Christmas coming up soon, it’s a natural time to party and celebrate with your coworkers. Get in touch with your staff and let them know that you plan to have a party on your last day of work before Christmas.

Let them know in advance so they can plan ahead, then hire a holiday catering service and some entertainment to make it more enjoyable. You could also book a function room at a local bar or restaurant instead if there’s not much space in your office. The goal is to celebrate successes and occasions together for sake of team-building and interacting with your employees.

Assist them outside of the workplace

The workplace might be the main location where you interact with employees, but it’s not the only thing that matters to them. For example, your employees might need time off for family issues, and as an employer, it’s always nice to show concern for their issues and give them the time off they want.

If your employees have commitments outside of work, then you need to understand them without being too intrusive so you can assist in their life outside of work as well as inside the office.

Focus on individual performance

It’s always a good idea not to bundle up your employees as a group when talking about performance, especially if their efficiency varies. When judging employees and their performance, make sure you target individuals and speak to them in private instead of making it a public issue.

Speak with each member of staff in an attempt to improve their ability to work, and always offer assistance when it feels like they could use a little helping hand. Whatever you do, don’t try to micromanage your employees either. While it makes sense to monitor staff that are performing below par, never look over their shoulder for too long or else they could find it intrusive and difficult to work.