Many dental practices think that getting the best equipment and nice work environments are what makes their teams happy. In reality, all most employees want is to feel appreciated for their hard work and dedication to the practice.
Money is tight right now, so there are some other ways you can help your dental team feel happy and appreciated. When you can’t afford generous bonus packages for every good job, some of these methods should still keep your team happy to work hard.
Create a Positive Working Environment
One of the best ways to keep any team happy is to create a work environment that people can really enjoy and feel connected with. You want your team to come into your dental office and feel like they are stepping into their second home.
When you can’t use any of the budget to use monetary incentives for good behavior, create an environment that makes people want to do good work every day. A positive work environment keeps everyone happy and provides positive energy that can’t be bought with money. As a bonus, this positive work environment often helps teams be more productive.
Acknowledge and Encourage Positive Behaviors
For many people, the feeling of being recognized and appreciated for good work is worth far more than any gift. The best part for you? Appreciation and praise are free! Many people look for approval to show that they are doing a good job and regular appreciation of a good job is always encouraged.
When an employee or freelancer does something above and beyond what was expected of them, share it with the entire office so everyone can see what gets praise. If someone took one for the team in a more private manner, a handwritten card has so much power in an age when everyone is used to receiving emails and texts.
Keep the Team Informed
For many people on a team, the opportunity to learn some valuable information is worth much more than money. Especially for younger and less experienced employees, offering free courses or training on special tasks can get them excited to learn more and helps you see who is really eager to get promoted and work hard.
If you hear of any opportunities that may interest employees, bring it to their attention and they will associate that positive experience with you. A team that works together to share information and knowledge will become more bonded and respected than a team just performing with the belief there is a bonus on the line.
Key Takeaways
As we just scratch the tip of the iceberg, we hope you have an idea of just how many ways you can make employees happy in a dental practice. When money is tight, words of encouragement and making employees and freelancers feel appreciated is a very valuable currency. Creating a positive workplace automatically makes people more willing to work hard. Fill out our form or download our app to join Stynt!