Motivating your employees and yourself: how different is the manager from the staff?

Managers often tend to behave as though they are responsive to different motivating forces than their employees. However, employees at all levels are much alike in terms of what they wish to obtain from their work. There are drives that vary in intensity from person to person, but the basic motivating forces remain the same. Essentially, it is not possible to "motivate" another person as such; it is possible only to create the conditions under which the individual can become self-motivated. The manager must appreciate the key principles of motivation, including the relationship between repetition and reinforcement and the importance of timely feedback. Also, the manager must learn what his or her legitimate role is concerning the fulfillment of employee needs. Successful managers will be those who are sensitive to their own needs and desires, credit their employees with the same or similar needs and desires, and treat employees in the manner in which they would like to be treated by higher management.