Positivity is a habit, and the only way that you'll cultivate long-term positivity and sustained motivation with your team is to reinforce it daily. This takes focus and self-discipline, but the benefits can be substantial.

First, make an effort to build confidence in your team. Giving responsibility helps you get started with this, but you can also build confidence by celebrating the successes that your team members achieve. Another way to help your team is to provide training and development opportunities, so that your people can build additional skills and knowledge.

As you've likely experienced in the past, one person's bad attitude can affect the entire group. If you have a team member who consistently thinks negatively, then you need to take action before he or she drags the group down. The Betari Box (below) is a useful tool for explaining how someone's attitude and behaviour can affect the people around them.

Meet with your negative team member one on one, and use this tool to explain how his or her attitude is affecting the group. Approach the situation with sensitivity and respect: this person might be experiencing problems at home, or may have deeper issues that might be contributing to his or her negative attitude. Next, try to understand the problem. Is this person unhappy in his or her role? And what could you do to help him or her turn things around?