6 Ways to Motivate Employees and Banish the Post-Holidays BluesÂ

6 Ways to Motivate Employees and Banish the Post-Holidays Blues   Returning back to work after the holidays can feel like a bit of a comedown after all of the festivities and the back-to-work blues can often lead to a drop in productivity throughout January. A new year also leads to people reassessing their careers and they may look to jump ship, if they dont feel satisfied at work. At this time of year staff are often in need of a bit of a motivation boost in order to get back into the swing of things, so how can you ensure that your employees are happy  and working to their full potential? Here are a few ideas. 1) Help your employees to set goals targets The beginning of a new year is the perfect time to assess how the previous went and what can be learnt from it. By taking the time to sit down with your employees and discussing what they would like to achieve in the year ahead,  you can provide them with the support to do so. Setting goals and targets gives them something to work towards to and motivates them to maintain focus at work. Offering a bonus if these targets are met can also work as a great incentive to boost productivity. 2) Launch a health initiative One of the most common new years resolutions is to get fit or lose weight, so why not help your staff achieve this? After all, a healthy employee is a happy employee. You can do this by starting up a health initiative that encourages healthy eating, by setting fitness challenges or providing free healthy snacks in the workplace. Alternatively you could offer staff gym memberships at a reduced rate, or start up lunchtime exercise sessions on site to get people up and moving. 3) Give them something to look forward to January can feel a bit depressing once all the parties are over and funds are running low, so you can boost spirits by giving everyone something to look forward to. This could be a staff outing, afterwork drinks or an early finish from work. 4) Encourage staff to get some fresh air In the Winter months, when the weather is drab and the days are short, its common for people to feel a bit a down. In order to improve your employees moods, try to encourage them to get some fresh air and daylight on their lunch break. As little as a 5 minute walk could make a world of difference. 5) Include staff in your vision Your employees want to feel valued and like they are making a positive contribution to the business, so its important that you share your company vision with them and allow them to have an input. You can do this by holiday a meeting on the first week back and asking for feedback about any changes staff would like to see made and encouraging them to share ideas for improvement, new projects, etc. 6) Offering training or development opportunities At the beginning of the year, people are often more driven to learn something new and work on improving themselves, so it make it the perfect time to offer training courses and learning opportunities. This can help to boost motivation, improve work performance and increase job satisfaction. [Image Credit: Shutterstock]

Womens Careers Changes in the Past 10 Years

Women’s Careers Changes in the Past 10 Years Professionally, things have certainly changed for women over time; no longer are they looked upon as if they’re only capable of raising children, being good housewives and looking good on some successful man’s arm. In a fast changing world, they are starting to leave their marks in fields which were once known to be male-dominated, as well as in leadership positions. Excelling in a male-dominated workforce does not mean that you have to become less feminine â€" it simply means that you must be confident and focused as far as your  aspirations  go. Findings In December 2013, the  Pew Research Center  published an article with some very interesting findings. Research had shown issues regarding professional women and some of the following points were highlighted: Young women, as opposed to their male counterparts, started their careers better educated. For example: In the 25 â€" 32 year old group, 38% of women and 31% of young men entered the work force with at least a 4 year college degree. Compare this to the 1970s findings when men were at 20% and women at 12%, and you can see a remarkable difference. The same research showed that today’s young women make more money than females of past generations. Greater Confidence This should inspire women to be more confident, as the next step up would be to show their determination in managerial positions. It seems that the workforce is also taking note of the fact that women may be much better at strategizing and planning than had been thought in the past. Research data shows further evidence that companies are starting to take note that, as opposed to what businesses may have believed previously, women may actually be very valuable in senior positions. Case in point: In 2009, companies with female CEOs performed very well. The New York Times Company (under Janet Robinson) and WellPoint Inc. (under Angela Braly) were amongst those that showed great success and recorded remarkable jumps in stock prices (68% and 39% respectively). The trend of having women at the top of successful groups is very apparent. Mary Barra,  CEO of General Motors  was named 1st on Fortune magazine’s list of “50 Most Powerful Women in Business” as well as one of the “World’s Most Powerful Women” by Forbes. Others include Marissa Mayer (Yahoo Inc.) and Meg Whitman (Hewlett-Packard Corp). Leaders At the end of 2009, an article in  The Economist  made some interesting observations such as, ‘‘at the end of her campaign to become America’s first female president in 2008, Hillary Clinton remarked that her 18m votes in the Democratic Party’s primaries represented 18m cracks in the glass ceiling.’’  It states further that  â€˜â€™ in the market for jobs rather than votes the ceiling is being cracked every day’’.   This situation would never have presented itself a few decades ago when women were seen primarily as good supporters, but not necessarily as leaders of one of the world’s most important economies. The article further states that women now own almost 60% of university degrees in America and Europe. It seems that they’re certainly becoming more educated than men and may therefore take greater leading roles in many industries in the future. Poker Long seen as the domain of men, the world of professional poker is certainly not lagging behind. Many more women are now entering and becoming successful in an arena which offers them an opportunity which was not exactly welcoming until recently. Katie Stone, one of professional pokers so-called “Grindettes” was interviewed by prominent online poker brand  Full Tilt Poker  and said that the numbers in poker are growing  and,  â€œOverall, women are taking a more leading role in the poker world. It is a slow process but more women are starting to appear and are playing the game at a serious level.”  In the past, men made the headlines as far as poker is concerned â€" these days many more women choose it as a career and are quite successful. Chefs Although the world’s top chefs still tend to be male, an article by  The New York Times  (January 21, 2014) about female chefs becoming more prominent put Lauren DeSteno, the newly appointed chef de cuisine at New York’s smart Marea Restaurant, in the limelight. Says DeSteno,  â€œin a good kitchen, male and female really doesn’t matter anymore.” Being in charge of 20 chefs who report to her doesn’t seem to intimidate her.  â€œYou get the work done, you handle yourself professionally â€" and you go home.”  At 31, she’s totally confident and believes she has what it takes. Previously, most women chefs were enrolled in pastry courses; these days, a much greater percentage than in the past are entering general culinary programs as is evidenced by the figures supplied by the International Culinary Center. For example, at Johnson Wales University, the proportion of female graduates more than doubled between 1992 and 2012. It is clear that women are making their presence felt in the world’s top kitchens. Management In recent times, it has become increasingly apparent that women are making great strides in fields where they hardly made an impact previously.  According to Forbes  (2011),  â€œWomen are pouring into management and professional occupations that require more education and offer higher pay and status.”   Women are now taking over jobs in fields such as Accounting and Auditing (61.8%), Meeting and Convention Planning (83.3%), Financial Management (54.7%) and Education Administration (62.6%), to name but a few. It is true that some decades ago women in these jobs (and as leaders) were in the minority. That is no longer the case as the above examples prove. It must also be mentioned that many women have mastered the art of  combining motherhood  with being successful professionals in demanding jobs. The Military It is no longer strange to find women in  the military, as well as in combat roles. Projections show that female military  veterans, who comprised 8% of the total force in 2009, will be up to 15% of all living veterans by 2035. This may not sound significant, but it will mean double the numbers of 2009. This shows a significant increase in numbers in a field that previously employed almost no females except those in positions that were thought of as “female,” such as nursing. Making Important Strides One has to be careful when assuming that what is taking place in the workforce will be the trend for future decades. However, the above examples certainly support evidence that women are no longer relegated to being mere assistants; no, they are making important strides towards leveling the playing field. They are taking on careers which were, until quite recently, seen to be “reserved” for their male counterparts. They are starting to become managers and leaders in their field. Women have come a long, long way from hiding in the shadows and are starting to shine their own professional light.