Motivational quotes for work: How they can do more harm than good

As managers, most of us have dropped a motivational quote in the workplace in a bid to inspire our team.

Whether you’re finishing up a team meeting and casually say something off the cuff like:

• “There’s no I in team”

• “Teamwork makes the dreamwork” or

• “One team, one dream”

Similarly, perhaps in a team presentation you’ve slid in a motivational quote from a professional athlete, celebrity or renowned business person.

Michael’s Jordan’s “Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence win championships” always springs to mind for us.

You might even have a motivational quote printed out on your desk. Something that really resonates with you that you want to emulate in your own team.

In some capacity or another, most of us have used motivational quotes in the workplace (we use them at Candour Coaching - but we’ll get to that in a second).

As a manager, however, have you ever considered that they may be doing you more harm than good?