Here is a brief excerpt from an article by Laurie Ruettimann for Halogen Software’s TalentSpace blog. To read the complete article, check out others, learn more about the firm, and sign up for email alerts, please click here.

* * *

There are human capital experts who believe that your job as a leader is to develop other leaders. Your productivity and profitability will suffer if you’re not promoting and serving your best and brightest worker

I think that sounds like a lot of pressure. Yes, your executive team wants to develop and retain talented employees. However, they also want double-digit growth and increased profit margins.

So how do you motivate and engage your workforce in a useful way while also staying laser-focused on your organization’s goals and objectives?

The first step is to deconstruct three motivational myths.

[Here is the first]

Myth #1: Talented workers want more work

There are a handful of employees in your company who are admired for their determination, productivity, and work ethic. These are individuals who show up every day with a positive attitude and deliver results at an exceptionally high level.

As leaders, we assume that our high-performing employees want more work and more challenges. Nothing motivates high-performing workers more than opportunities to grow.

That’s a myth.

Your elite employees would like a day off work. They’re tired. On top of that, they are probably a little sick of shouldering the burden when it comes to output and results.

As leaders, you have a performance management process. Your best and brightest workers want you to use it regularly. That process should be used as an opportunity to thank and motivate your most productive employees. But you should also go one step further and address organizational and departmental challenges.

If you haven’t read Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes Are High, start there. It’s time to start managing performance at all levels throughout your company.

* * *

Here is a direct link to the complete article.

Laurie Ruettimann pushes the boundaries of what’s possible in Human Resources. Her expertise as a Human Resources leader in Fortune 500 organizations allows her to frame the world as it used to be known. Now, as a woman in the thick of the social world, Laurie is a writer and speaker who covers topics on Human Resources, technology and employment. For the Halogen TalentSpace blog, Laurie shares her insights and perspective on how HR professionals can rethink their profession to better support employee productivity and engagement.

You need to know about the work of David Zinger. Here’s a link to his website and to his Amazon page. I also urge you to check out the Employee Engagement Network, an international organization that David founded.