Job security with a good work-life balance

Classic factors of employee motivation continue to play an important role. A new study shows that every second employee attaches great importance to a secure job. However, only around a third of those surveyed are willing to make sacrifices for this.

Job security is an important motivating factor for every second employee: 52 percent of women and 58 percent of men attach great importance to it, according to the results of the study “The future of work: A journey to 2022”. For the study, the consulting company PWC asked around 2,000 employees in Germany about their ideas about the future of work, 46 percent of whom were male and 54 percent female.

According to the study, however, only around a third of those surveyed are willing to sacrifice their work-life balance for a secure job: 36 percent of the male and only 32 percent of the female respondents say they would be permanent for the prospect of a secure job available to your employer.

Salary is important but differently than you think

It is said that a salary increase should have little effect on motivation at work. Appreciation and more responsibility are the key. But that’s not entirely true – because salary does play a role in employee satisfaction.

Money alone does not bring happiness – this is the result of countless job studies that have examined how the level of salary affects the motivation of employees. Sometimes experts are looking for the ideal salary that makes people happy. Time examines how salary increases affect employee engagement. The answers that these studies give to the salary questions are similar: salary increases only have a minimal effect that quickly fizzles out over time. If you want to motivate employees or keep them in the company, you should use other means as a boss.

All of this may be true, but it is not the whole truth. “Money does not necessarily generate motivation, but if the payment is not right, demotivation can arise,” says psychology professor Maika Rawolle from the University of Media, Communication and Economics in Berlin to the “Süddeutsche Zeitung”. The unclear expression of “incorrect salary” is very correct, because there are some salary constellations that reduce motivation. Everyone agrees: It’s about injustice, that is, about a comparison.

Germany: The discreet lives of the super rich

The rich in Germany been never been as well-off as they are today and assets have never been so unevenly distributed. But who are they? How do they live? And what do they think of their country?

A journey into the discreet world of the super-rich. One percent of Germans own over a quarter of the country’s assets, whilst half of the country’s citizens have no assets at all. But while the German media report on the growing poverty in the country on a daily basis, little is known about the super-rich. They keep a very low profile and can walk the streets unrecognized.

Don’t overpay your employees!

What drives employees? There are many answers to the question: Responsibility is one thing, appreciation is another. And money? Not so important. More salary can even be dangerous.

According to the motivational pope Sprenger, money can trigger a flash in the pan motivation. “The half-life is usually no more than 48 hours,” says the management consultant. Happiness researcher Ruckriegel is a little more optimistic: “Once the basic needs are met, it takes about two to three months for the employee’s expectations to adjust and for them to be just as satisfied as they were before the salary increase.”

In the long term, however, there is a risk of dramatic consequences from excessive financial generosity. According to Sprenger, it increases the stimulus and expectation level and can thus trigger a real addiction to rewards. Ruckriegel also warns: “You always have to push more, but at some point the end of the road will be reached.” And the higher the starting salary level, the lower the impact on productivity and the higher the greed. Because then the main thing is to earn as much as possible more than the others.

Eleven golden rules for making a career

Success at work does not fall from the sky. However, those looking for advancement must internalize a few principles in order to be able to take their professional destiny into their own hands. Here are the most important tips from motivational trainers, career coaches and HR professionals.

Germans would rather travel than pursue a career

LinkedIn study examines what success means to employees. Happiness and health are more important than career advancement.

Contrary to the classic definition that success is synonymous with an influential position in a company and a lot of money, professional success plays a rather subordinate role for German employees. This was the result of a representative study commissioned by LinkedIn, which examined how Germans define success for themselves today.

According to this, success has an individual meaning for 66 percent of those surveyed. Just under a quarter of those surveyed see professional milestones as a success. Financial aspects such as a salary increase (16 percent) or a six-figure salary (12 percent) are rated even less important. Being happy (72 percent) or healthy (71 percent) is seen as the greatest achievement. For most people, the job serves as a way to have more freedom later. 17 percent would like to retire by 2027 and be able to actively shape it.

Do Germans really have work-life balance?

It’s common to hear that Germans are great at switching off once their working hours are done, but according to a new survey, this may not be entirely true.

The survey commissioned by Novotel surveyed around 5,000 adults across Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Poland to investigate their habits and working schedules. Surprisingly enough, it found that the Germans have the worst work-life balance of all four countries, with 58 percent work and only 42 percent leisure time.

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