Incentives

Creating a start-up has given me different views of doing business. I started by thinking that because I have a great idea that everyone would be willing to help right from the start. Great ideas don’t move people. Value and appreciation do.

It wasn’t enough to make people fall in love with my concepts, I had to make their time worth their while. I had to provide incentives to people to work for me. They have to go back home at the end of the night and put food on their table. I had to provide income for them.

The motto was, if you don’t work you don’t eat. I couldn’t afford to pay people a starting salary, so I made sure that people would be compensated when they showed results. This is how the commissions section came about. I made sure that the people who worked and put in the time into their craft, would receive the most commission possible. It doesn’t help me if I made a lot and my team made a little. That’s counterintuitive. I want people to get paid. I want people to be happy working with me, so I make sure their time and results get rewarded.

A way in which I motivated my team was by rewarding bonuses to people that surpassed expectations. I wanted to acknowledge their hard work every single time. I would never wait for a team member to get tired of working with me, and me wait until then to give them a bonus to stay. That’s not good business. If you have enough to pay your team, then pay your team. Don’t wait until the last second.

As a business owner, one of the most important things is your team. Keeping your team happy and motivated helps reach your brand’s long-term goals. Reward your team, show them that you care and appreciate them, because when you do, they will do the same to you.