By Ramkumar Seshu, Author of Born to Win – Leadership lessons from the Bhagavad Gita
I LOOK FORWARD TO TALK TO YOU. CLICK THIS LINK
TL;DR
Happy employees are more productive, yet global engagement has fallen the key difference between managers and motivators lies in creating workplace happiness rather than just managing tasks. Through real examples from India – like Gowri’s IT team achieving increased happiness scores and Murli’s Branch Team, reducing stress, this article reveals three essential strategies: creating purpose-driven visions, building trust through autonomy, and celebrating achievements meaningfully. The transformation from manager to motivator begins immediately when leaders shift focus from controlling activities to inspiring joy in meaningful work. Born To Win’s “Inspire & Win” program helps leaders make this crucial shift toward creating genuinely happy, high-performing teams.
Table of Contents
- The Beautiful Connection Between Happiness and Performance
- Why Some Leaders Create Happy Workplaces While Others Create Stress
- Three Essential Strategies for Creating Happy, High-Performing Teams
- Your Journey from Manager to Motivator Begins with Inn Happiness
After helping thousands of leaders across India transform their approach to people management, I’ve witnessed something truly beautiful: when we shift from merely managing tasks to creating genuine happiness in our workplaces, magic happens. The difference between managing and motivating isn’t just about getting work done—it’s about creating happy workplaces where people feel energized, valued, and excited to contribute their very best.
Think about it – when was the last time you walked into a workplace where people were genuinely happy? Where laughter mixed naturally with productivity, where challenges became opportunities for growth, and where Monday mornings brought excitement rather than dread? This is what happens when leaders transform from managers into motivators.
The research is crystal clear: happy employees are 13% more productive than their unhappy counterparts¹. But beyond the numbers lies something even more profound – the human transformation that occurs when workplaces become sources of happiness rather than stress.
In today’s challenging business environment, where global employee engagement has fallen to just 21%², creating happy workplaces isn’t just a nice-to-have – it’s essential for survival and growth.
The Beautiful Connection Between Happiness and Performance
What we’ve discovered through our work over the last 22 years with organizations is that happiness isn’t just a byproduct of success – it is the catalyst that creates success. When leaders focus on creating happiness, they don’t just improve business results; they contribute to an environment where work becomes a source of joy and fulfilment.
This is not a wishful thinking but this is backed by solid research. Happy employees are more creative, more collaborative, and more resilient when facing challenges. They stay longer, contribute more enthusiastically, and create positive ripple effects that transform entire organizational cultures.
Consider Gowri, a department head at a Telecom services company in Bangalore who joined our “Inspire & Win” program. When I first met her, she was managing through detailed procedures and constant monitoring. Her team was completing deliverables, but the enthusiasm for their work could have been better.
Our process helped Gowri chose to become a motivator, focusing on creating a happy workplace where people felt valued and excited about their contributions. She began implementing what we call the “Happiness-Driven Leadership” approach – helping each team member discover personal meaning in their work while creating an atmosphere of genuine happiness. She introduced “Happiness Share” – a 15-minute daily check-ins where team members shared both work updates and personal celebrations.
The transformation was remarkable. Within four months, her department achieved the highest happiness scores in the company. More importantly, they delivered improvement in project quality while actually reducing overtime hours. Team members started volunteering for complex assignments, and the department became known as the “happiness hub” of the organization.
Why Some Leaders Create Happy Workplaces While Others Create Stress
The difference between leaders who create happy workplaces and those who inadvertently create stress isn’t about personality or natural charisma. It is about understanding that people do not just want to complete tasks; they want to feel that their work brings joy, meaning, and genuine satisfaction to their lives.
Let me tell you about Murli, a Chief Manager at a bank in Bangalore who attended our “Winning to Lead” program. His production facility was experiencing high stress levels and a workplace atmosphere that could have been better.
Rather than implementing stricter policies, Murli decided to focus on creating workplace happiness. He started each shift with “Gratitude Circles” where workers could share appreciations for colleagues’ contributions. He created cross-functional teams where shop floor workers could lead improvement initiatives.
The results were transformative: workplace stress reduced, employee happiness scores increased and production efficiency improved. “Ram,” he told me, “Ambiance of our branch improved by the contribution of every staff member”
Three Essential Strategies for Creating Happy, High-Performing Teams
Through our experience helping leaders across diverse industries, we have identified three core approaches that consistently transform workplaces into sources of happiness and high performance:
- Create a Vision That Sparks Joy and Purpose
Happy workplaces are built on foundations of purpose and meaning. Great motivators don’t just communicate objectives; they paint pictures of the beautiful impact that becomes possible when everyone contributes happily and purposefully. They help people understand not just their tasks, but how their joyful engagement creates ripple effects of positive change.
Purpose-driven happiness is about helping each person understand how their daily contributions matter, how their work affects real people, and how their growth and success contribute to something larger than themselves. It is not about grand gestures or lofty mission statements.
Your Action Step: This week, have individual conversations with each team member about what aspects of their work bring them the most happiness and satisfaction.
- Build Trust That Enables Happy Autonomy
Trust is the cornerstone of workplace happiness. When people feel trusted and empowered to work in ways that align with their natural strengths, they don’t just perform better, they experience genuine happiness and satisfaction in their daily work.
The most effective motivators understand that micromanagement destroys both happiness and performance. Instead, they create environments where people feel trusted to contribute in ways that bring them joy while achieving excellent results. They focus on outcomes rather than activities, and they give people the freedom to find their own path to success.
Your Action Step: Identify one significant responsibility that you have been managing closely. This week, delegate it completely to a team member, focusing on desired outcomes while giving them the freedom to approach the work in ways that maximize both their happiness and effectiveness.
- Celebrate in Ways That Multiply Happiness
Recognition and celebration are fundamental human needs, and they are essential ingredients in creating happy workplaces. Truly motivating leaders create cultures of celebration where successes, learning experiences, and collaborative achievements are shared in ways that multiply happiness throughout the team.
Effective celebration is about genuine appreciation expressed in ways that matter to each individual. It is not about expensive rewards or elaborate ceremonies. Great motivators learn what forms of recognition bring joy to each team member and customize their approach accordingly.
Your Action Step: Institute a weekly “Happiness & Achievement Celebration” where you spotlight not just results accomplished, but the creative approaches, collaborative spirit, and personal growth that team members demonstrated while finding joy in their work.
Your Journey from Manager to Motivator Begins with Happiness
The beautiful thing about becoming a motivator focused on workplace happiness is that the transformation begins immediately when you shift your attention from controlling activities to inspiring joy in meaningful work. The moment you start seeing your role as creating conditions for happiness rather than managing compliance, everything changes.
At Born To Win, our “Inspire & Win” program has helped thousands of managers make this crucial shift toward creating happy, high-performing teams. Participants consistently report not just improved team results, but increased personal satisfaction and happiness in their own leadership journey.
Start your transformation today with one fundamental question: instead of asking “What tasks need completion?” begin asking “How can I help my people discover genuine happiness and fulfilment in the meaningful work we’re creating together?”
Remember, the world desperately needs more leaders who understand that work can be a source of happiness, growth, and joyful contribution. When you help people find genuine happiness in their work, you’re not just improving business outcomes; you’re contributing to a movement that believes every workplace can be a space where human beings flourish.
Ready to transform from manager to motivator? Ready to create a team that’s not just productive, but genuinely happy and excited about the work you’re doing together?
The journey starts with believing that your people want to experience happiness and fulfilment in their work—they just need a leader who helps them discover the joy that comes from meaningful contribution alongside colleagues they genuinely care about.
Discover how “Inspire & Win” can accelerate your transformation from manager to motivator. Connect with Born To Win today and learn how to create genuinely happy, high-performing teams : https://borntowin.co.in/contact-us/
References:
- University of Oxford. (2019). Happy workers are 13% more productive. Oxford News. Retrieved from https://www.ox.ac.uk/news/2019-10-24-happy-workers-are-13-more-productive
- Gallup. (2024). Global Engagement Falls for the Second Time Since 2009. Gallup Workplace. Retrieved from https://www.gallup.com/workplace/659279/global-engagement-falls-second-time-2009.aspx
#BornToWin #LeadershipDevelopment #TeamMotivation #HappyWorkplaces #InspireAndWin #WorkplaceHappiness
