Give The Gift Of Acknowledgment
Judith Sherven, PhD
Executive Empowerment Coach, Decades of Working with Individuals at Tech Companies and Start-ups, Fostering Career Growth, Award-winning Self-help Author, Radio and Podcast Guest
Whether it’s at a holiday time, or for an individual’s birthday, work anniversary, or any time....
You can always give the gift of Acknowledgment.
It doesn’t matter whether you are the person’s manager, colleague, or direct report, Acknowledgment—when done well—cannot be downplayed or fluffed off. And one thing that almost everyone wants is to know where they stand. Acknowledgment provides just that.
Now, I’m not talking about mere compliments like “great job” or “well done.” Nor am I referring to high 5s, big hand shakes, or demonstrative hugs. Those are all great, and have their place.
What I’m promoting is the value of direct Acknowledgment of someone’s specific skills and/or talent, detailed achievements, and/or company loyalty.
*** Skills and/or Talent: what someone does easily, innately, and better than most people can be taken for granted by that person and by you. For example, some people are genius coders, perhaps even self-taught, and can solve tech problems in ways other engineers can only dream about. Others are great team leaders who have been whiz bang motivators, inspiring people since kindergarten or before. Whatever the skill is, acknowledging it and making sure your acknowledgment is received and integrated can go a long way toward loyalty and extra effort.
*** Achievements: All too often people succeed beyond expectations and barely get a high five. This can occur whether the outstanding success is with the outcome of a specific project, someone they manage who is helped to become a super star, horizontal communication that leads to compassionate, productive, and successful collaboration, managing up with senior leaders and/or executives that results in otherwise unexpected help in the form of increased budget and/or head count for a project or team, etc. Acknowledgment, specific to the success created by your outstanding employee, lets them know you are watching what they do and not taking them for granted.
*** Company Loyalty: When someone has been with the company for several years and repeatedly steps in to help with difficult, challenging issues it’s easy to take that person for granted. But when their loyalty and can-do attitude is taken for granted it can lead to heart-break. Yes, heart-break! The kind that is irreparable. So make sure to Acknowledge your loyal, often times uncomplaining, “good guys” to make sure they are still with you next year and the year after that.
Acknowledging the types of achievements above by spelling them out both directly between the two of you, and when appropriate in team meetings, goes a long way. Even better is to reward these people with meaningful bonuses (like tickets to a special sporting or theatrical event, dinner for two at a local upscale restaurant, pre-paid coupon at the local day-spa). All of this provides incentive for your employee(s) to do it again.
How have you been Acknowledged in ways that had impact?
Judith Sherven, PhD and her husband Jim Sniechowski, PhD https://JudithandJim.com have developed a penetrating perspective on people’s resistance to success, which they call The Fear of Being Fabuloustm. Recognizing the power of unconscious programming to always outweigh conscious desires, they assert that no one is ever failing—they are always succeeding. The question is, at what? To learn about how this played out in the life of Whitney Houston for example, and how it may be playing out in your own life, check out their 6th book: https://WhatReally KilledWhitneyHouston.com
Currently providing transformational executive coaching, leadership training, and consulting for LinkedIn and a dozen other Tech companies and individuals around the world, they continually prove that when unconscious beliefs are brought to the surface, the barriers to greater success and leadership presence begin to fade away. You can learn about their core program “Overcoming the Fear of Being Fabulous” by going to
https://OvercomingtheFearofBeingFabulous.com
Their 7th book, short and to the point, “25 Power Speaking Tips That Will Leave Your Audiences Wanting More,” is available in kindle at: https://tinyurl.com/25PWRSPKGTips
Early Childhood Teacher, Harry Helper Educator
7 年Thanks Judith, excellent
Sales Development Representative at Tenfold
7 年Great read, Judith! A lot of people search for validation, especially to know if they're doing the right thing, to begin with. That's why a simple acknowledgment and appreciation can do wonders. Also, people tend to repeat actions/decisions if they feel rewarded and valued for it.
Connector Rainmaker Dealmaker | Strategic & Tactical Consultant generating ROI through Business Development
7 年Outstanding
Always be true to yourself, be fair and honest to those around you & keep a smile on your face ??
7 年I think, no, I know, WAY too many people are taken for granted and are not given the proper acknowledgement like you speak of here. I truly believe that if more of this starts happening, even on a smaller scale, it will make a huge impact of morale in the workplace. It may sound small to an employer, but trust me, your employees will respect you so much more for noticing them and what they actually do for you. I don't care who you are or what rank you are in the work force, everyone likes to be acknowledged at some point for what they do. Is it really that hard to do a small gesture to say thank you? Remember, even the boss had to start somewhere. I am of the humble thought that we treat others as we would like to be treated. ?? (I know this isn't always the way of life but I can dream)