Is it important for employees to feel like their work has meaning? Is it important for the employee to know they are cared for and valued? You bet! If an employee feels good about what they are doing, they tend to produce more, produce better and be willing to go that extra mile for the company. If the employee feels that the employer cares about them and what is important to them they will perform better. How do I know this? I have owned several small businesses over the last 20 years and found that these are some of the key ingredients to a good employee. Of course they need to be paid what they are worth, but I have found that in most cases that feeling of being appreciated or knowing that you are valued is more important than wages. So how can a small business owner make this happen?
1.Discuss your goals and ask the employee about their goals, both personal goals and work related goals. Showing that you are interested in their goals shows that you care. If an employee knows they are cared for by their employee, they will tend to reciprocate that feeling towards their work. As an employer you will see that the more you care, the more your employee will want to do their best for the business. By sharing your company goals, you can make them aware of your passion for the business, letting them know what matters to you and to the business.
2.Discuss the connection between the two. If work goals go against their personal goals, it can be difficult for your employee to be motivated at work. On the other hand, if the two are aligned, it becomes a win-win situation. For instance: an employee goal may be to spend more time with their family. A need arises for the employee to work overtime, the employer may ask the employee to work overtime, and as a reward let the employee know that if there comes a time that they need to leave for an hour or two for a school time event during work hours, that they will be allowed to do so. There may be a play or a sporting event that is during work hours, if you allow the employee to leave early for this, without even having to pay them, the employee will be very grateful. Be flexible with the employee, then when you ask for something extra from them, they usually will jump at the chance to help you. Never tie one to the other or tell them they owe it to you, just let them know that you care about their goal of their wanting to be around their family more.
On the other hand, if you always say no to the employee, this is interfering with their goal. Their focus then becomes to find a way to reach their goal, this may mean lying to you or looking for another job. Ultimately their goals will come before yours.
3.Alignment: The sooner you can find out what is important to your employee, the better. Some employees focus on money, others on time off, others on flexibility, others on moving up, others want the same challenges everyday, to leave work issues at work, some always think about work, they think about how to make things better. Once you find out their priorities, you can act on them, let them know that you are interested in what matters to them. If money is a priority, let them know what they can do to reach their financial goals. If flexibility is a priority, fins out more. Maybe it is as simple as letting them start 10 minutes late or 10 minutes early twice a week to get their kids to a babysitter. If they are always coming up with ideas, give them an outlet for these ideas.show them that you want these ideas and you will consider them. If they are comfortable just “doing the job”, find out what they are best at and let them do it. If they want more responsibility, give it to them, have them show you what they can do.

An employee needs to know what is important to you as a leader. What is your vision for the company, for them personally. Let them know, they are the key to your success. If they don’t know where you want to go, they can’t help you or your company get there.