How to Boost Morale in the Workplace

[Nat]

Is your work environment negative? Mine seems to be becoming more so. I've done a cursory search for improving morale at work, and it appears most articles are geared toward managers/supervisors. However, I think it's possible for people in any community (including the workplace) to boost morale of one's companions.

The only advice I recall on this score was actually on a pagan podcast that said - even if your work is not ideal, until you can get into a better situation, the least you can do is be a joy to work with.

I will continue to look for advice applicable to employees - but I thought it would be neat to find out from y'all if you have found ways to boost morale at work - or even failed in the attempt.

Something happened yesterday at work which made me feel unaccepted and excluded as a gay person. I found out later in the day that another person feels excluded and unaccepted for other reasons. It's not the sort of thing you can just throw donuts at. But I would love to help create a happier and more inclusive environment in the workplace. Be the change I want to see yadda yadda.

[Medusa]

Hey Nat-

I'm pretty lucky in the respect that my workplace is super positive but it hasn't always been that way.

When I first came to work there, I came to a team of 15 people who were all very disjointed and did not connect with one another on a personal level very well.

I made it my mission to change that and we now have a very positive family-style team and it honestly is the main reason I love my job so much.

Some things I have done to make that happen:
* Candy jar on the desk - Yes, it's simple but it works. It gets people to stop by and say hello and random chit-chat.

* Invite people out to lunch or just invite folks to have lunch together if they brought theirs from home. Even sitting around in the cafeteria griping about how bad the new copier sucks can unite folks. Yes, it might be foxhole bonding but it will go a long way for common ground.

* Events outside of work -I started planning karaoke and bowling nights outside of work about once a month. This worked MAGIC for team bonding and helped folks find common ground while in a looser atmosphere.

* Find your people - Find other gay people, other women, other creatives, other eccentrics, other folks like you and bond with them. It might be as simple as forwarding a funny email but I have found that humor goes a LONG way in a stressful environment.

I know it can be incredibly draining to work in a negative environment. If you have the energy, be the one bright spot in that space. Be the one person who always has a kind word or a joke to tell. Be the one person who writes a funny saying on the board every day. Make your magic. I know you can. <3

[Linus]

I do believe that it's really is dependent on management to make a place positive or negative. If management doesn't recognize this and implement a morale boosting plan, there is only so much you can do. I'm lucky enough to work at a place where management looks for employee input on how to improve morale and make our company a place that people want to stay.

One of the things that happens at my company is that employees organize their own potluck every other Friday or similar. As part of the potluck, any food brought in has to have ingredients identified for allergy purposes but this helps lots.

[Sparkle]

I work in a "cooperative" that is not always so cooperative... and not always positive.

Some things I do to improve the every day atmosphere:

*Be a good listener, especially when someone is upset or angry. I have a small private office, I invite them to come have a sit down and close my door and just give them a little space to say what they have to say. I don't try to fix their problem, or offer to negotiate on their behalf; but I find that giving them a place to articulate their feelings/thoughts usually provides some sense of relief in the moment.

*Laugh freely and easily and as often as possible. Laughter is contagious. And people will remember that about you. Share silly memes of kittens doing whacky things, tell your old stories that are funny/embarrassing, laugh about the ridiculous "murphy's law" things that happen in the office. ...

*I let the children's energy affect me (I work in a k-8 school). I have bad attitude days just like everyone else. I find that if I spend fifteen minutes watching a music class I can't help but smile and my energy is changed. It might not turn around my whole day but it helps in the moment.

[Blade]

I have to agree with Linus, I believe that moral lies in the hands of management. I've worked at the same company for 27 yrs. Up until about 10 yrs ago moral was tremendous at our company. My company is privately owned, the second generation owners were great and knew how to keep moral high and treated the employees and their families good.

They gave us the highest pay per skill level in this area, we had company paid insurance for ourselves and our family. The company rewarded us monthly for safety and house cleaning, people were promoted for their knowledge and dedication to their department. In the beginning during the spring they would have like a huge carnival with rides and animals and BBQ chicken and pork and all the fixins and events for the kids and fun competition for employes. We had Christmas bonus, and if we were sick well when we got well we came back to work with a Dr note. The owners would come thru the plant and sometimes fall right in with us working. I remember working one weekend and Mr D was working with us it was hot and we were all wringing wet. He ask did anybody have a BBQ this weekend he was told yep and which fire department was doing it, he left and came back with a truck load of BBQ plates for us. We had company paid retirement. In the early 80's when the economy went south. They had employees cutting and splitting wood for their homes to keep from laying them off or cutting their time back.

Third generation owners suck, they were born with a silver spoon and believe everyone who is hired or promoted to a management or sales positon should have a college degree. Doesn't really matter in what as long as it is a degree. We have people running departments with a English degree and one has a degree in religious studies...what is that? Most of our managers and many of our foremen don't have a clue how to perform in their own departments, have never done a job or some may have minimal experience in their departments. Some of us are grandfathered into the company paid retirement, if you were hired after 2007 u don't get any. No Christmas bonus, they don't recognize Dr notes any longer unless it falls under FMLA. We pay a large portion of our and our family insurance. Just for me is over $200 a month They act like they were doing us a favor and invented Performance pay for us, only thing is we can only make 150%, but we can only make that for 7 hrs because they take us down to 100% rate for an hour a day for breaks and clean up even if you don't take a break or stop to clean up. We do have an opinion survey every 2 yrs which is a waste because they don't follow up on anything addressed with the survey. We don't have a company sponsored fun day anymore. Our safety and house cleaning bonus is together now and if one person on your team has an incedent, not a loss time accident just an incedent ya loose half of that money and yes it is taxed we get it once a year at the end of Jan. The managers however get a huge bonus of thousands of dollars. When we were on short time a few years back 28 hrs. Our manager came in one day pulling 2 new wave runners he'd bought with his bonus. Here we all were worried about losing our houses and cars and if we could buy gas and groceries and he's rubbing it in our face his new toys. We get a raise every year. With the 2nd generation owners it was .50 a year sometimes more. Now we get .50 a year period but the catch 22 is we get 30 cent added to our base rate and the rest in graduating increments up to 150%. Now here is the catch...you have to make 150% every day all day to get your full raise...as I stated before they cut us back to 100% for an hour a day sooooo ya never get your full raise. 3rd generation keeps retired managemet personal as consultants and on payroll and benefits for several yrs after retirement.Pay attention here...3rd generation owners come to the plants with body guards.....

Yeah lets hear about moral in the work place...in manufactoring about all you can do is encourage and be supportive of each other, because 3 things will get you gone....trying to unionize, rocking the boat and age, because age lowers production and that cost the company money.

[txdoc]

I know on the surface it may sound simplistic, but sometimes things profound can be found there. I used the book Fish to initiate book study discussions alleviating toxic interactions. We learned to play at work.

[genghisfawn]

I'm a consultant with a major corporation, and I lead a team of 3-4 IT technicians who build and complete the installations. The guys get along really well and I feel incredibly fortunate that they respect my instructions and decisions, but still keep me in on some of the fun (ex. I will be coming in tomorrow to find the shoes I keep leaving behind bubble wrapped.)

One of the technicians from our client's group came for an afternoon to help us out in exchange for me fetching him from the airport. He followed me out for a cup of coffee and said, "I notice you let the guys chat a lot." I said, "I never see any lack of output in the work... their output is consistent with the algorithms developed around a conservative estimate of individual accomplishment." But I said it with a smile.

He said, "So as long as the work gets done, you don't care?"

Thing is, I've learned how NOT to lead people from some of the worst examples in the business. Managers who controlled your every move, threatened your job and expected dangerous and degrading work to be performed out of scope. On the subtler side, there were managers who didn't respect an employee's knowledge, skill and capabilities. Some managers were sexist or ageist without really meaning to be. Others just could not turn in their parenting hat at the door and wouldn't let employees be themselves - they expected cogs in their machine and they weren't taking any backchat.

So I told the guy, "I do care. I want the work done and I want them happy. If they have a good day at work, I've had a good day at work."

I mean it, too. If they were stressed or unhappy and they quit, I'd be completely sunk! Workplaces need to remember that people are people, first and foremost. They can do awkward things, sometimes get sick or cranky, feel hungry and experience health trouble. Some are very sociable and gain energy from others (like everyone on my team); some are introverted and need to hide to recharge mid-day (like myself). I see their extroversion and I want to make sure they get what they need, so if they flap their gums and nobody's bothered? It helps morale. I, however, tend to leave them for the afternoon and hide in my office to get work done. :)

[RockOn]

When I hear people clipping their nails for more than a few minutes in a cube near me, I quit going to them and asking if they intended to cut their toenails when they were finished cutting their fingernails.

[Turtle]

We are really understaffed this week between planned vacations and then people being sick, car accidents, etc...people be VERY stressed...

...it doesn't fix being understaffed, but I'm setting up the kitchen early tomorrow morning with coffee, assorted teas, Emergen-C, juice, fruit, and goodies...especially some gluten-free something nice for the REALLY understaffed manager...

[Cole610]

Help! my work mate has turned into a c u next tuesday.
Im looking for some advice on what to do about my toxic work environment.
So here is the situation.
Ive spent the last 3 yrs in a some what secluded receiving area of a large retail store.
I spend the first half of my shift working with one other person. Now up until 3 or 4 months ago we have had a very good work/friend relationship. This persons job is different than mine but crosses over a bit. So basically for the last 3 yrs minus 4 months this person actually worked about 2 to 4 hrs a day. The rest of the time was spent talking on the phone to family/friends
talking to who ever ventured back to chill and making vacation plans on line and so on. So finally the “company” is like hold on, this job is really only part time so we want you to start doing more of what I do.
Now, this person complains about everything and everyone. Gets extremely defensive and combative when I have to show them correct procedures. And is just plain mean.
In the last 2 weeks I’ve barely spoken to her.
Now heres the chain of command
Dept. supervisor- . If you look up incompetence in the dictionary well you know
I dont trust him to deal with it with out making it worse.
Operations manager- Good guy, new at the position but also has past working relationship with said, c u next tuesday.
HR- About a month ago i asked our HR person if they could talk to my work mate because they didn't seem happy.
Does not look like that happened
So please any words of wisdom will be much appreciated.

[girl_dee]

My whole office is taking off half day for the eclipse.

Thats a team builder and morale booster! :blink:

[easygoingfemme]

My whole office is taking off half day for the eclipse.

Thats a team builder and morale booster! :blink:

One of our directors landed 20 pair of glasses so that we can take turns out there checking it out. There will be no half day, that's for sure. But it will be an unusual break in the day!

[girl_dee]

One of our directors landed 20 pair of glasses so that we can take turns out there checking it out. There will be no half day, that's for sure. But it will be an unusual break in the day!

My work said they were supplied solar.glasses but i dont think that is happening. I have some though.

They have organized the mimosas and.food.trays which is most important!!!

[CherryWine]

They have organized the mimosas

See, now that would definitely boost my morale.

We'll be having MoonPies.

[girl_dee]

See, now that would definitely boost my morale.

We'll be having MoonPies.

Its a party :moonstars:

[Gayandgray]

BUMP BUMP.......

[homoe]

BUMP BUMP.......

Sorry I'm retired and so happy to be out of the rat race..........

[Lyte]

At my previous place of employment (high volume 24/7 call center) there was a def lack of morale amongst the Supervisors. I was the new kid on the dayshift block and as a way of getting to know them and boost morale and suggested that we have a dinner night, once a month and each month the location would change from one Supervisor's house to the next Supervisor's house. It was very fun and gave us the opportunity to interact with one another in a non-stressful and non-work related environment.

[Gayandgray]

Sorry I'm retired and so happy to be out of the rat race..........

LOL!!! Well I'm sort of "semi retired" now since I only work weekends. At least that's what I tell myself to make me feel good!:koolaid:

[Gayandgray]

I really like my new job but a lot of the younger people are very negative. They even joke that I'm "too bubbly". Maybe it's just that I'm a little older and been a cna a long time, and I enjoy interacting with my elderly nursing home residents? I find most of them very cute and I respect them. A lot of the young cna's are only there for a job, period. They could care less about the residents. I try to always smile and have fun at work to make my shift go by quicker.

[Orema]

Something we do at work is to try and catch someone doing something right. "Something right" can be something as small as opening the door for someone whose hands are full, to calling a vendor in the middle of the night who's on the other side of the world, to saving an order that may not have been processed without someone doing some research on a problem.

Our company purchased some inexpensive craft-like starfish that we give to people who are caught doing something right. 10 starfish equal $10.00.

And I often give out movie tickets to anyone who finds an error in any of our products (my manager supports this).

It's not much, but I think it does help to create a friendly and supportive workplace.

[Logicaly]

As someone at my company who has had the opportunity to work in both a management and non-management position, I have been fortunate enough to see it from both sides in terms of morale.

From an employee standpoint, its important that I do my part in keeping team morale up, by being an active member of the team. I give praise to my fellow team mates, interact with them on a regular basis, and really just follow the basic principles of being a good person.

As a Manager, its important for me to make sure I point out the good things my direct reports do, and not just the bad. I have found that if I make myself available to them, and I mean truly available to them, even if its because they are just having an off day, that it makes them feel more comfortable in their job, and that they do a better job, and enjoy it while they do it. I'm very transparent in my management style, so I call it out when someones rocking the numbers, and the team as a whole seems to enjoy it because they know if they shine, they will get that recognition. On that same note, I empower all of them to shine, and I make that incredibly clear in all of my interactions with them.

If management sets the right tone, and encourages growth, gives praise where praise is due, it really goes a long way. Its amazing what a simple hey, you are doing a killer job, keep it up, can do!

My company as a whole, also embraces both positive, and negative experiences. For positive, we have a love machine (get your minds outta the gutter folks!) where if a fellow employee does something good, we send them love, every love they get has a dollar value tied to it and we get a love bonus at the end of each quarter. That being said, we also embrace the negative, if we make a mistake, we own it, we learn from it. We do shrek ears. Oh yes, if we fub up, we put on shrek ears, so people can ask us what we did to earn them (yes earn...mistakes happen, it means you tried something different, and are learning from it), and it fosters an environment where you are not ridiculed, but it becomes a learning opportunity for everyone.

Morale is a top down sort of deal, it comes from the culture your executives set, and it runs down stream from there. It takes everyone in every position to help promote positive morale, and it really only takes one person to bring down morale.

I guess my take away would be, lead by example. Praise makes you feel good, so make sure you are passing it on. If you are looking for other types of things you can do, write an actual hand written thank you note when you want to thank someone. I send care packages to my direct reports to show my appreciation. I have a lot of remote staff, so I let them go buy themselves dinner, and have them expense it, so that its on the company. There are lots of physical things you can do to make people feel good, but a lot of it really comes from the culture you set within the company, and the team itself.

[JDeere]

My co workers really need a morale boost. We work 7 days a week 8 to 10 hours and no days off in the month of December. Everyone is testy and really grating each others nerves. Something needs to give, we deserve something for our work besides a paycheck like maybe free lunches dinners etc while we are working on weekends.

[cathexis]

My co workers really need a morale boost. We work 7 days a week 8 to 10 hours and no days off in the month of December. Everyone is testy and really grating each others nerves. Something needs to give, we deserve something for our work besides a paycheck like maybe free lunches dinners etc while we are working on weekends.

Maybe you and a friend could meet with Human Services (or personnel) to arrange such lunches for yourself and co-workers. Many personnel departments are just looking for ways to increase job satisfaction and motivation. This might just boost morale until employees also start kicking something fun. Suggest it, and let us know the outcome.

To the bosses, a happy worker is a more productive work. In other works, the more benefits they give you, the happier you'll be. A happy worker makes more money for any company. It's just basic capitalism.
Good Luck!