Here is an excerpt from an article written by Martin Zwilling for Business Insider. To read the complete article and check out a wealth of valuable resources, please click here.

Up front, I want to acknowledge that I do not think it is possible to motivate another person. However, I do believe that it is possible to inspire, activate, energize, nourish, and support self-motivation.

*     *     *

Is your team fully engaged to give their best, day in and day out? In a recent study by TowersWatson, an international HR consulting firm, fewer than 21% of employees surveyed described themselves as “highly engaged,” down from 31% in 2009. 8% admitted to being fully disengaged.

Having only one-fifth of your employees highly engaged is not the hallmark of a “Winning Business.” Other studies show that employee engagement derives from three important factors:

1. Alignment of the employee with the goals and vision of the company.

2. Faith of the employee in the competence of management and their commitment to realize the goals and vision.

3. Trust in their direct supervisor that he or she will support his or her people and help them to succeed.

It has often been said that employees rarely quit companies. Instead, employees quit their managers or supervisors by leaving the company. Mark Herbert, a consultant focused on engagement, says: “Engagement lives and dies on the front line of your business.”

Increasing positive managerial behavior and reducing negative managerial behavior will go a long way towards improving employee engagement. When your talented employees are engaged, they are able to perform spectacularly and build and improve your winning business. Here are some ways to get managers and supervisors started in focusing on ways to improve engagement (and to be better managers).

[Here are four of the 14.]

1. DON’T get angry: “Getting angry is easy. Anyone can do that. But getting angry in the right way in the right amount at the right time, now that is hard.” (Mark Twain) Anger does not belong in your managerial kit bag.

2. DON’T be cold, distant, rude, unfriendly: Especially in difficult times, employees take cues from their immediate supervisors and need to hear from them. As such, your team will judge you by your action, moods, and behaviors, not by your intent.

3. DON’T send mixed messages to your employees so that they never know where you stand: Keep your message simple, focused and prioritized. Too many messages and initiatives just confuse and alienate people.

4. DON’T BS your team: This includes saying things that you don’t believe in. This includes hiding information and just plain lying. By the time each of us is in our early 20′s, we have all developed very well-tuned BS detectors.

*     *     *

Martin Zwilling‘s passion is nurturing the development of entrepreneurs by providing first-hand mentoring, funding assistance, and business plan development.  He is the Founder and CEO of Startup Professionals, a company that provides products and services to startup founders and small business owners.

e-mail: marty@startupprofessionals.com