The Attitude of Gratitude Challenge is an investment that #1 costs you nothing but time, and #2 pays dividends now, and well into the future, both for your employees, and for your business.
The challenge has its birth in the answers we most commonly see in our employee satisfaction surveys. For whatever reason, answers to employee satisfaction survey questions such as, “I have received recognition or praise for doing good work;” and, “My supervisor seems to care about me as a person;” or, “Someone at work encourages my development;” have a tendency to come back neutral or negative (even when that employer feels like they are really making an effort to care about their people!) This phenomenon is happening across industries, not one specific industry.
Does that mean you don’t honestly and sincerely appreciate your people? Absolutely not! Remember, human beings are complicated. One of the things that make humans so complicated is: perceptions, often times, are a person’s reality.
We never get to know the exact day that Eddie Employee is feeling crummy because of issues that may not even be work related. That day may be TODAY. Today may be the day that a kind word from you could snap him out of a bad day.
So here is my challenge for you (and your managers/supervisors):
Please, I know what you may be thinking, ‘this is some soft, Pollyanna-ish, millennial, feel-good nonsense.’ Ok...Then my challenge to you is: do it just to prove me wrong. Yes, it’s awkward. Yes, it’s out of the ordinary. But that is exactly the point!
If a person’s boss was to come up to them and say, “Hey, can you swing by my office? I need to talk to you for a second.” What would that person be thinking?? Human nature is to assume to the negative. That employee’s first thought is most likely, ‘Uh-oh; What did I screw up?’ So when they come into your office and receive a random act of kindness from you, their boss or co-worker, telling them specifically how and why they are appreciated...it will make their day! They will leave your office as a spark that will start a forest fire of productivity and positive morale.
“The DEEPEST craving of human nature is the need to be appreciated.” –William James
We wouldn’t dare have those we love and care about go without food, water, clothing, and shelter for days on end. Then why do we let employees and family members go without reminding them how much we appreciate them?! People will literally go insane in order to gain a feeling of importance or appreciation. Don’t believe me, ask a psychiatrist.
That’s it. Good luck with this challenge. It will pay dividends beyond what you may think.
If you’re hesitating...just remember, “If we keep doing what we’ve always done, we’re going to keep getting what we’ve always got.” Simply put, “Nothing changes if nothing changes.”
Good luck! Feel free to share this with anyone you feel would benefit from it.
[contact-form][contact-field label="Name" type="name" required="true" /][contact-field label="Email" type="email" required="true" /][contact-field label="Website" type="url" /][contact-field label="Message" type="textarea" /][/contact-form]
