Motivating others: Use these sample phrases to craft meaningful performance evaluations, drive change and motivate your workforce.

Motivating is using persuasion, incentives and mental or physical stimulants to influence the way people think or behave individually or in groups.

Motivating others: Exceeds Expectations Phrases

  • Keeps track of one's tasks and chores and ticks them off when finished in order to see how much one has done in a day and how much one needs to do
  • Makes a list of all the positive things at work and tries to think about them when one feels demotivated
  • Makes a schedule and sticks to it in order to teach one's body and mind to turn on "work mode" when one needs to work
  • Thinks about why one is working and why one is well-suited for the job in order to stay motivated
  • Checks to see how many tasks one has left and how many one can cross off instead of counting down the time one has left in a day
  • Takes occasional breaks between tasks or projects in order to refresh one's mind and feel motivated to work
  • Takes the time to get one's desk in order and make things just how one likes them
  • Takes some time to chat with other employees in order to build a sense of teamwork and camaraderie
  • Quickly replaces negative thoughts with positive ones; stays positive even when things are not working as expected
  • Rewards oneself for tasks and projects that have been completed successfully and on time

Motivating others: Meets Expectations Phrases

  • Asks one's boss for more responsibilities in order to broaden one's skill set and keep one stimulated and motivated to work
  • Eliminates distractions; commits to turning off one's phone for a few hours at a time in order to get something done quickly
  • Seeks out honest feedback from the bosses in order to get an ego boost and refresh one's motivation to continue to perform well
  • Focuses primarily on own strengths in order to complete tasks or projects and feel more successful on the job
  • Keeps motivators close; tells other employees what one wants to accomplish so that they can hold one accountable
  • Makes realistic lists for the day in order to increase motivation to accomplish goals and gain momentum from crossing things off the list once they are complete
  • Changes up own routine with a new, fun hobby in order to release tension after work
  • Sets career goals that match with those of the company in order to stay motivated during the workweek
  • Respects other employees' opinions and contribution to the company in order to allow relationships to develop smoothly
  • Makes sure to get along with colleagues in order to enjoy being at work and boost motivation

Motivating others: Needs Improvement Phrases

  • Sets goals but loses sight of the reasons behind them thus one is unable to stay motivated to accomplish them
  • Does not invest in own workspace; Chooses equipment that is difficult and uncomfortable to use thus is unable to remain motivated at work
  • Often picks fights with uncooperative, unreasonable and frustrating employees, customers, and suppliers
  • Sets big goals and projects that make one feel intimidated and pressured thus one gets lost in the details
  • Feels uncomfortable and uneasy when one's experience doesn't match up with what one expected
  • Spends time with colleagues who are negatively minded thus gets discouraged to remain motivated at work
  • Does not ask for feedback from colleagues for fear of being criticized
  • Does not believe in oneself; is always doubtful of one's potential to accomplish goals thus makes it difficult to get motivated
  • Feels overwhelmed when there is too much work to do which kills one's motivation
  • Allows things unrelated to one's goals, such as social life or annoying bosses, kill own drive at work

Motivating others: Self Evaluation Questions

  • What are some of the projects or tasks you have tackled without being asked or supervised? How did you push through difficulties?
  • Can you give an example of a time when you overcame a significant problem, which made you very proud of yourself?
  • What is one of the lowest points you have had at work? What did you do to remain motivated and accomplish your goals?
  • What types of tasks or projects do you enjoy doing the most? Why?
  • Do you prefer working in a busy environment or one that is quiet? Why?
  • What is the biggest goal you have ever accomplished? Why do you consider it the biggest? Describe the problems you faced, if any
  • What qualities do you prefer in a supervisor? Can you describe a time when you worked with someone like this?
  • What situation(s) make(s) you feel demotivated at work? Is there anything you can do to change this/these?
  • Is there a time when you have not accomplished a task due to lack of motivation? What led to your lack of motivation? How did you fix it?
  • How do you motivate others to accomplish their goals? Give an example of when this happened

These articles may interest you