"Catch People Doing Something Right" (The Power of Praise)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Because of its power, ridiculously low cost, and rarity, praise is one of the greatest missed opportunities in business today.”

--Gallup Management Journal

 

Many of us are used to looking out for things that are going wrong. After all, if something's wrong, it needs to be fixed before it damages productivity, or affects the bottom line.

But do you actively look out for things that are going right? And how often do you show your appreciation for people who are performing well, even if you're not their manager?

Many people don't give enough praise in the workplace. But, almost everyone – including team members, colleagues, customers, suppliers, and your boss – loves to get sincere recognition for a job well done.

When you’re leading a team, criticism is like your brake and praise it like your accelerator. If you want to go somewhere, you’ve got to use your accelerator more than your brake.

The Power of "Pressing the Accelerator"

Research from the Gallup organization revealed that:

• Employees who do not feel adequately recognized are twice as likely to leave the company.

• Neuroscientists believe the ventral striatum and nucleus accumbens together form a key brain center for processing rewards and that a neurotransmitter (a chemical signal) called dopamine is what tickles them giving them a feeling of reward and satisfaction. The readings from video game players suggests a two-fold increase of dopamine, a level similar to intravenous injection of methamphetamine. 

• The brain craves a surge of dopamine. People alter their behavior to get those delightful bursts. (Like gambling, savoring chocolate, etc.) Positive words have been found to activate regions of the brain associated with reward. As one employee remarked, “For me, receiving praise is like setting little explosions inside. It’s like 'Oh that was good' but you know, I can do better.” The effect of dopamine seems so powerful that people ruin their lives trying to induce an artificial buzz (Such as cocaine, heroin, nicotine, and alcohol).

The chemical not only makes healthy employees feel good when they get praise; it is also crucial to memory and learning. It creates an internal reward system that makes employees want to repeat behavior that the company need—if doing the right thing earns them recognition.

• Some managers say, “If I don’t say anything, you’re doing a good job.” This “no news is good news” is logical enough to work on machines like lawn mowers, where the motor is designed to keep running until the operator hits the kill switch, but it flies in the face of the neurobiology just described. “I’m just not very good at giving praise.” Would the same leaders also dismiss themselves from financial results by saying, “I’m not very good with math”? 

• Managers who fail to deliberately use the power of positive feedback are not only handicapping their own managerial effectiveness, they also diminish the power of salaries are paying. Those who receive praise and recognition on the progress they’re making are two and half more times likely to agree that they are paid appropriately for the work they do.

• There is a personal pay-off to giving praise: If that’s not enough, managers who need one last reason to change their ways might consider a recent experiment in which subjects were given one week to write and deliver “a letter of gratitude in person to someone who has been especially kind to them but had never been properly thanked.” The delivery of the letter was statistically linked to increases in happiness and decreases in depression for up to a month after the communication. (For the giver of the praise)
  

Two Reasons Why a Culture of Praise Is Rare

1. Some of the deepest human emotions are essentially selfish. We are better wired to receive praise than give it. We feel our own hunger more than we empathize with others.

2. While the ventral striatum seems to be programmed to positive events, other parts of brain are even vigilant for negative news. Biologists believe this is a survival instinct. For our distant ancestors in the woods and ourselves on the highway, failing to see something good is disappointing; failing to see something bad could be fatal. So it should not be surprising that the majority of managers and companies are quicker to swat down problems than they are to praise exemplary performance. Without a conscious effort to maintain recognition, the negative events will continually jump in line before positive events.

 An example of this is that sometimes leaders are reluctant to praise others because it’s much easier to look “smart” when criticizing them. Ken Blanchard humorously called this approach “Seagull Management.” Employees don’t hear from a seagull manager until a mistake is made. The manager then swoops in, dumps on their people then flies out until the next mistake is made.  In my experience as a coach, some version of seagull management is still very prevalent in organizations today. Remember, the goal of coaching and feedback is to help others succeed, not prove how smart you are.

 

Other times leaders use praise as a weapon.: “So-and-so is great. What’s wrong with the rest of you?” Managers who do that basically throw the person who succeeded under a busload of peers who now feel resentful. They will not get a repetition of the success. Good praise is specific and sincere and inspires others rather than making odious comparisons. 

 

Cultivate a Positive Relationship with Your Team

• Regularly express appreciation. John Gottman’s research shows, the ration of positive to negative interactions in a successful relationship is 5:1, even during periods of conflict. This ratio doesn’t apply to a single conversation, and it doesn’t mean that we’re obligated to pay someone five compliments before we can offer critical feedback. But it does highlight the importance of providing positive feedback and expressing other forms of appreciation over time in order to strengthen the relationship.

• Make the other person feel “known.” Making people aware that you see them as individuals—and not merely as employees—is a critical step in the process, but it need not be overly time-consuming. A few years ago a coaching client of mine who was a senior manager in a midsize company felt that he was too distant from his employees but didn’t have the time to take someone to lunch every day. His efficient compromise was to view every interaction, no matter how fleeting, as an opportunity to get to know that person a little better. He made a habit of asking employees one question about their work or their personal lives each time he encountered them. “Whenever I can, I connect,” he told me. Although at times this slowed his progress through the office, the result was worth it.

• Focus on people's  strengths. Sometimes, you have to make sure a person gets to a level of proficiency that a flaw doesn’t become a big problem. But you get more bang for the buck out of focusing on strengths than weaknesses, out of maximizing the upside rather than minimizing the downside. Praise reveals what works and makes it usable, repeatable.  Giving praise shows how a strength can lead to success, how people can build on one success to achieve more success. Praise shows that you care personally, and it also challenges directly as is encourages people to keep doing more of what’s great.

• Apply the same discipline to praise that you do to criticism. I've posed this question to hundreds of managers: “How much time do you spend making sure you have the facts straights before giving a team member praise?” The answer, typically was little to none at all. 

When you’re vague with praise, it is just as likely to leave a person feeling patronized. And either way, vague positivity has very little impact. An empty “great job!” can sound condescending and be demoralizing, exactly the opposite effect than you may have intended. Specific praise helps the person and team understand what success looks like. It give ambitious team members a model to follow.

 Praise Pointers

• Be specific and share the impact. State the specific behavior (That you can see or hear) that you want the person to continue or change (Be crystal clear on the “replacement behavior”). If it is constructive feedback separate the person from the behavior. (Good person, poor behavior)

Describe the positive or negative IMPACT of the behavior as it relates to job performance, values, a department standard or goal. Be specific WHEN and WHERE did you notice the behavior and WHO did it impact. Use sensory-rich (See and hear) examples.

• Mix public and private expressions of praise. Most employees enjoy being recognized for good work in front of their peers; others grow self-conscious and shy. Pay attention to how people respond so you can praise them accordingly. Even if an employee likes public praise, make a point of delivering it one on one sometimes to show you really mean it.

• Measure your praise appropriately. If you say “Excellent!” every time an employee performs a relatively minor task successfully, what will you say when he or she accomplishes something really important? Don’t go overboard; thank employees for doing a good job, but save lavish praise for significant achievements.

• Don’t be too predictable. Though you don’t want to hoard your praise, delivering it the same way all the time will lead employees to expect it, and it’ll lose much of its power. Send a handwritten note, not just an email, or make an announcement in the middle of the day instead of always waiting for the next staff meeting. Praise works best when it’s a pleasant surprise

• Change your patterns. As employees grow and change, their needs will shift. You may praise a new hire often, but a veteran might perceive frequent expressions of appreciation as patronizing or intrusive. Be sensitive to what employees need at different points in their careers.

• Make praise personal. If you use the same words and rewards to praise everyone, some people will feel that you’re just repeating phrases you read in a management book. Get to know your people so you can honestly deliver the kind of praise they’ll respond to.

In the book, "How Full is Your Bucket," the authors present research that shows how a 30-second praise can positively affect your relationships, productivity, and health. Click here to download the 6-page book summary.

 

Pro Tip:  It's easier to see what's wrong than what's right. Try out this simple, effective technique to unleash the power of praise and honest appreciation:

 

1) Start each day with three coins in your left pocket.

 

2) Transfer one coin to your right pocket each time you praise someone or remark about something favorably.

 

3) Make sure that you have all the three coins in your right pocket by the end of the day, but don’t give compliments willy-nilly.

Don't miss the opportunity to, in the words of Ken Blanchard, "Catch people doing something right," then watch your team's growth and results accelerate.

To your greater success and fulfillment,

Peter Mclees, Leadership Coach, Trainer and Performance Consultant
SMART DEVELOPMENT

 

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contact: Email: petercmclees@gmail.com  or  Mobile: 323-854-1713

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Having worked with several companies throughout their growth cycle, we have valuable insights and strategies that would help any late stage startup, small or medium sized company achieve sustained growth and prosperity.