If you were to hazard a guess, where do you think you would fall on the spectrum? Giver or taker?
Regardless of where any of us fall, it’s important to recognise that we all have the capacity to ‘give’ and, as a result, make our work environments richer, healthier and more productive.
A few years back at AB we started a reward recognition scheme, called ‘Star of the month’, whereby colleagues nominate each other for going above and beyond the call of duty.
The process is not complicated. If a colleague recognises that somebody in the workplace has been especially hardworking or has gone out of their way to assist and support, they simply drop our MD, Katie Macaulay, an email explaining why.
Our monthly office meetings end with Katie announcing who has been nominated, by whom, and why. This part of the process is especially engaging and rewarding for the nominator and nominee alike as gratitude, like any other attitude, is contagious.
It is often said that within the workplace, appreciation is an even better motivator than money. Being singled out by your peers for special praise brings to mind childhood memories of a gold star on your homework or batting for the winning team in a game of rounders. Needless to say, it helps generate goodwill among colleagues that permeates throughout the business.
The bottom line: you never know when your words of appreciation will make a person’s day. It requires very little effort and yet it makes you feel good knowing that you’ve brightened someone’s outlook with something so simple.
Pass it on.
