Janis Allen » Recognition

Gifts That Keep On Giving – Symbolic Awards That Tell a Story

Mike — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 00:18:38 +0000

By Michael McCarthy

Once upon a time, Performance Improvement Consultant Russell Justice wisely said: "The best positive reinforcement is anything that gives us a story to tell."

People go home from work with stories to tell every day. Most of the stories are not very positive. We want to give people good stories to tell. Good reinforcement “creates” a story to tell.

People say, “You won’t believe what the boss did today,” “Guess what Joe said,” or “Let me tell you what we did.” We want them talking about the fun they had, and the excitement of accomplishment.

At the appreciation dinner for the Nassau Habitat for Humanity in Fernandina, Florida, construction manager Patrick McCarthy found unique ways to give positive recognition to hard-working Habitat volunteers.

Using anecdotes and incidents from their work days, he created clever items that symbolized events, and running jokes among the “regulars” on the crew. Many volunteers were golfers, so Patrick modified golf clubs to create chuckles all around.

The volunteers from the framing crew each received a golf club with a hammer- head on the end. Presenting these, Patrick deadpanned: “The only way Fred can swing his arm is with a golf club, so now he can practice an overhead swing with this hammerhead club.”

For the painting crew chief, his golf club sported a brush at the opposite end of the grip. “This will reduce the number of brush strokes needed to paint a room,” quipped Patrick.

These items are treasures, of course, because they give people a story to tell. Patrick delighted them with their co-workers and family by telling funny stories about things that happened at work. And today those goofy golf clubs have become props for the stories their proud owners are telling to family and friends.

Symbolic recognition awards are . . . gifts that keep on giving.

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We Affect Other People With Almost Everything We Do

Janis — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 20:22:28 +0000

When I was 11, I cut the grass in my family’s yard all by myself for the first time. Tired and sweaty, I was so proud. A family friend drove into the driveway just as I was finishing. His first words out of the car were “You missed a spot behind the shrubs.” I was crushed. Why hadn’t he noticed the rest of the four acres that I had completed correctly with so much sweat and effort? I suppose his eye was trained to look for the imperfect spot. I never wanted to cut the grass again.

Most of us know the power of other people’s approval or disapproval in motivating us to keep trying. Or to feel like throwing in the towel. A smile and a comment showing that someone values our efforts will keep us going for a long time.

Joanna tells about a week when her supervisor was out of town; she had been working through lunches and until 7:00 P.M. every night to meet department deadlines. She was feeling burned out, she said, when Wayne, a co-worker, came and stood for a minute at her cubicle door one evening, watching her work. “You work hard,” he quietly stated, and then turned back to his work.

“These three words kept me going for three more days,” breathed Joanna. Wayne is a man who doesn’t mince words, so I was quite positive that his comment was genuine. In my boss’s absence, someone recognized my work. In the past we’ve expected managers and supervisors to provide the positive recognition for the people who work for them. Or worse, we’ve depended on pay raises, end-of-project celebrations, or annual appraisals to motivate people.

“There’s nothing wrong with any of the things listed above,” Dr. Aubrey Daniels notes. “They’re just too little, too late." Many of us who are non-supervisors are ready and willing to take more of a leadership role in managing our own careers and work experiences. We want to take positive steps to support the good performance of our teammates, all in the name of creating the best products, the best customer service, and a good place to work.

Everyone likes to get recognition.

When my co-worker, like Wayne in the story above, notices what I do, I’ll make double sure I keep doing it.

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Start the New Year “Bright”

Janis — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 21:00:34 +0000

Start your department’s new year off with a book club. Learn something new and fun, and make your workplace more positive in the process.

May I suggest You Made My Day: Creating Co-worker Recognition & Relationships, by Michael McCarthy and Janis Allen, available on www.janisallen.com - just click on "bookstore."

Here’s an exerpt from the book:

Recognition and relationships are intertwined concepts that are difficult to separate. We find it similar to William Butler Yeats’ observation, "How do you tell the dancer from the dance?"

We often can’t tell the relationship from the recognition. A relationship is composed of the feelings created by past actions and words between two people. Recognition is showing how you value another person’s work.

Recognition (giving and receiving) is difficult or impossible when competitiveness, lack of trust, or insensitivity are part of the way people relate.

The New Year is a great time to transform those relationships into more positive ones!

Below are some ideas for organizing a group "read."

1. Set a frequent (twice per month works well) schedule for discussing an achievable number of pages to read. Two chapters per two weeks works for most everyone. Ask everyone in your group to place the dates and time on their calendars. Over lunch is a good treat.

2. Suggest that members (on a volunteer basis, not required) tell:

a. A key point or insight they gained from the chapter

b. An example they’ve seen in their own business or personal life

c. Ways they can apply the ideas within the group, or to other departments

Send your examples or insights to janisallen@janisallen.com, and we’ll publish them (with your permission) in future newsletters and blog posts.

Happy New Year to all, and to all a bright read!

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You Can Make or Break Someone’s Day

Janis — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 17:43:15 +0000

Here’s how to MAKE someone’s day:

Don’t just point out others’ mistakes. This breeds defensiveness and creates a negative, fearful culture.
Give your attention to those specific actions people do well. Don’t let just squeaky wheels get the grease. Stop by good performers’ workplaces sometimes and ask, “How do you do this so well?” Close mouth and listen (without suggestions for how to do it better. Yikes, careful!).
Extinguish whiners and complainers. Listening breeds more negative talk. Re-direct negative conversations by askiing an action-oriented question (“What’s the status of project abc?’). Also, most importantly, END the attention for the whining. You’ll feel so much better, too.

Quick-draw Recognition

Janis — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 15:33:59 +0000

The road to a blah workplace is paved with good intentions . . .

“I intended to let Michelle know what a good impression she made on our visitors.”
“I meant to tell Derek that his solution worked for our team and saved us hours of work.”

But time is precious.

In just 30 seconds, put your good intentions into practice. Make your recognition handwritten and personal; therefore memorable.

Write an old-fashioned paper note which can be displayed or kept in a drawer. When your lucky recipient runs across it days or weeks later, it will remind him of his action that you valued, and refresh his energy to continue that same good work.

End the blahs for your lucky receivers!

For printable forms like the one above, click Download Quick-draw Cards, or for an email attachment card, complete the comment section below, typing “Request email card” in the comment box.

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What Did I Do Wrong?

Janis — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 23:27:48 +0000

Be specific . . . when giving positive reinforcement, you can never be TOO specific.
Wrong, apparently, in one case.
Having experienced great teaching by my new continuing ed. teacher, I wrote an email to the teacher, her boss, and her boss’s boss, with a 1-7 numbered list of specific actions she had taken to make the class valuable for me.
She didn’t mention receiving my email for several days. Finally I asked if she’d read it. She said, “Yes, thanks. But I felt like I was being evaluated by my own teacher.” Red-faced, I slunk into the corner and hid.
What did I do wrong?

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Give Recognition Without Spending A Dime

Janis — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 18:19:12 +0000

Trinkets, parties, awards, pizza, and even money. They come and go as recognition. Your eyeball-to-eyeball words of appreciation are more long-lasting and positively remembered.

Just take 30 seconds to say, “You did a lot of good work to get ready for this meeting. It shows.” Or tell someone “Your catching that mistake saved our bacon.” Sincere recognition like this is worth more than most tangible items . . . IF you make it personal, sincere, and don’t clutter your comment with requests for additional work, jokes, unnecessary flowery words, or a too-quick change-of-subject.

Say it in short and shut up.

(What’s your experience with recognition – giving or receiving – good, bad, or ugly?)

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