When working remotely, learning how to stay motivated is crucial for success. Without the logistical and social benefits of office space, priority management, and staying focused and energized can be challenging from a home office. Managing personal and team motivation requires personal awareness and intention to take action.
The latest social and neuroscience tells us that play does wonders for our brains and mental health. It motivates, enables emotional intelligence, improves our decision-making ability, and catalyzes learning. The following strategies can be implemented at both the personal and team levels to mitigate the risk of burnout.
Take Effective Breaks
A study by the Draugiem Group found that people who are the most productive at work are also disciplined at taking effective breaks. What makes a break effective? According to research, the magic number for a break is 17-minutes every 52-minutes.
At Ziksana, we encourage clients to engage with their play preferences during breaks. By engaging with the activities that are most motivating for you, you return to work ready to be productive.
Make Work Play
Play is one of the major factors that keep people intrinsically motivated at work. The book Primed to Perform, by authors Neil Doshi and Lindsay McGregor, explains that play occurs when you engage in an activity simply because you enjoy doing it.
Are there aspects of your work that feel like play? What projects would be most naturally motivating for you and your team? Whenever possible, work on tasks that feel like play and assign others to projects that align with their play preferences.
Prioritize Your Task List
Spend your energy wisely. At Ziksana, our trick is to work on activities that are fun first, so that the positive energy and emotions can carry over to ‘less fun’ work that is still important to get done. Know your priorities and avoid spending energy on less crucial tasks. Get distraction-free and commit to fully focusing on the task at hand for a set period of time.
If you are managing remote team members, ensure that people know the company’s priorities and are spending their time working on what matters most. Personal and team motivation will flourish when people’s energy is directed towards achieving impactful results.
Connect to “The Big Why”
In what ways do your personal values or beliefs get expressed through your work? According to Doshi and McGregor, people whose values and beliefs are aligned with the impact of their work are more intrinsically motivated.
“The Big Why” refers to your personal reasons for working that gives you a sense of purpose and can also be how much you connect with the ultimate purpose of the company. In times of undulating motivation, it can be useful to reconnect to ‘who gains from my work’ and ‘how can I make more of a difference in their lives if I get this done?’
Learn to Manage Motivation Remotely with Ziksana
To support individuals and teams in managing their motivation remotely, Ziksana offers several Virtual Workshops. Join us at our ‘Managing Personal and Team Motivation’ live online training to discover your play preferences, learn a framework for managing motivation, and connect with others who are working remotely.
Watch Ziksana’s Founder, Akshay Sateesh, discuss 3 long-term positive motivators that can be applied when working from home!
