Saying Thank You: Big Benefits and Zero Cost

Sounds simple, right?

It’s amazing how much reach those 2 little words have – for our teams, for our community, and for ourselves.

It’s not always easy…but why not?

Reading this article offered some clarity and provides some ideas of how to incorporate more praise into your leadership style. The author, Alisa Cohn, says, “It’s a shame – and a little weird – that positive feedback has gotten such a bad rap. The truth is that positive feedback is an insanely effective tool in your arsenal. It helps your employees feel confident, which helps them do a better job. It makes them feel appreciated. It signals that you have their backs. That, in turn, builds trust, high morale and loyalty, all of which lead to stronger retention. It allows you to give them – and for them to take in – critical or constructive or directive feedback more easily, because they are used to hearing positive things from you, too. And, it’s free.”

Do you have any direct reports?

Do you mentor any students?

Do you chair a committee?

Do you sit on an E-board for an organization?

Here are the author’s recommendations:

1. Don’t fear “over-praising.” As pharmacists we like evidence, and the evidence shows that ‘positive feedback is directly linked to performance.’

2. Be creative in looking for opportunities to thank someone. Maybe you don’t want to praise someone’s daily expectations, but overtime, those efforts lead to well-oiled machine. Perhaps that observation deserves a thank you.

3. People can’t read our minds. Just because we’re thinking, “Wow, they did a great job with that,” doesn’t mean they know. Find a way to say it or write it that feels authentic to you.

4. No sandwiches. You know what I mean.

5. Model this behavior so that everyone feels comfortable giving high-fives to each other.

I’ll end with the lesson that keeps showing up for me – maybe it will resonate with you, too: It doesn’t matter what type of leaders we’ve had; what’s most important is figuring out what type of leaders WE want to be.

Until next week,

Brooke