What we know to be true about the traditional workplace has forever changed… and may never stop changing.  We’re involved in what appears to be a never-ending process of establishing new norms and developing different exceptions.

And that’s okay.  Change is how you, as a person, become better and how your business expands into something bigger and more modern.  But sometimes, this can be hard for people to accept.

Take for instance, social media.

10 tips to keep your social media easy and fun

Once upon a time, social media was not suitable for the workplace.  You could never pick up your phone and casually scroll through that endless feed of yours.  If you did that, your boss would naturally assume your productivity is dead, your focus is dead, your commitment to the company is dead, and everything about you is dead to them.

But is all of that really true?  Probably not.  Well, except for that last bit.

RecruitLoop wrote an article that suggested when social media is allowed at the office, it can actually help attract top talent.  That’s not all it can do, though.  This allowance can help keep your morale high, your attrition rates low, and your competitive edge strong.

In fact, RecruitLoop says that workers are willing to work for less pay as long as they have social media by their side.  They would even go so far as to turn down a job if social media was not allowed at the office, or… they’d simply find a way to work around it – which does nothing for your culture, your morale, or your productivity.

So what can we learn from this?  A lot actually.  Here are a two key concepts to keep in mind.

Money isn’t everything.

Yeah, sure.  Money is nice, and no one would necessarily turn you down if you offered more of it.  But – and this is a big but – some people might appreciate something else more.

An extra day off.  Catered lunch.  Longer breaks.  Social media permissions.  Recognition.  A thank you.  These are the things dreams are made of – or, at the very least, the things employee engagement is made of.

Office perks that work

People look at things differently, and everything has a unique perceived value attached to it – even money.  Don’t be so quick to offer a bonus the next time something pops up.  Think outside the box, and consider a variety of avenues.

A job well done is a job well done.

We’ve finally started to accept the idea that people work in different ways.  Some experience productivity in spurts, others prefer to work at night, and some like to stand up and type.  But at the end of the day, whatever works, works.  A job well done is a job well done.

If you want to not only attract talented individuals but encourage them to use their talent to the best of their abilities, then you need to be willing to accept how they work.  This might mean that you allow your employees to keep their Facebook profile open on their desktops, or it might mean that you allow your employees to take a 10-minute walk outside once an hour.

Of course, the means don’t always justify the ends; however, if ‘how they work’ doesn’t affect how everyone else works and if they aren’t breaking any laws in the process, then why not allow it?

Again, think outside the box.  Just because it isn’t what the professional world would consider the norm, doesn’t mean it’s wrong.  If you’re getting results, then you’re getting results.  End of story.