Each year, around this time, I pause from work and recharge. This practice involves acknowledging the contributions of individual employees to the team’s overall success. After all, an important part of effective leadership communication is expressing gratitude. The Thanksgiving holiday often kick-starts the process for me.
I’ll be honest — the CrossGroup has experienced a difficult year. I’m sure many companies can identify with our stress. Anxiety. Change. Uncertainty. Delay and waiting (and not patiently). Chaos. You can add your own stressors here. Now more than ever, employees need to hear that they’re valued and appreciated.
As business leaders, one of our responsibilities is to recognize our employees’ accomplishments. Here are three ways to adopt a gratitude-based leadership communication style that’ll allow you to engage with your employees on a deeper level.
1. Begin with Yourself
We’re taught in business school to not just work harder but to work smarter. Believe it or not, being thankful can help in this endeavor.
Expressing gratitude to others has a powerful impact on you personally. Genuine appreciation will energize you. Acts of gratitude will boost your personal productivity and multiply your effort through others. Your focus changes. Now you’re looking for positive contributions, and my guess is that they’re all around you. Your employees’ emotional quotients will be enhanced as well as your own.
2. Impact Others
Our words matter. We sometimes fail to realize that what we write or say leaves an impact. If we want to change the culture of our organization, team, or cubicle mates, we must be the change we want to see in others. How’s this done? Shift your leadership communication style to one based in gratitude.
By saying thank you, we begin a cycle of appreciation that impacts far beyond ourselves. Look beneath the surface of the big wins and recognize all of the smaller efforts and contributions that went into their making. Thank every team member who played a role in the success. Be genuine and specific when showing appreciation, but try not to be too formal in your delivery.
3. Applaud All Contributions
I once had a boss who was skilled at letting me hear his appreciation through others. He’d say to someone, “Have you seen Mark’s contribution to the project? He solved that problem or worked long hours despite the difficulties. Let him know that I recognized this.”
My boss always expressed his appreciation to me privately. Still, he knew me well enough to know that hearing my work be recognized and applauded by others was a powerful motivator. Get to know what drives your own employees. Find ways to acknowledge their contributions that speak to them each as individuals. Putting in this extra bit of effort goes a long way in making people feel valued.
Gratitude’s Collective Power
I’ve discovered that gratitude in this season of stress has been like a miracle cure to my personal well-being. All the stressors are still present, but the sense of gratitude for my clients and coworkers seems to melt the pressure the stressors bring.
Thankfulness is a miracle cure because I’m happier and recharged for what lies ahead. Now I see more clearly how I’m not in this alone. I hope my employees feel the same. Together, we’ll come out on the other side more adaptive in our solutions, stronger in serving others, and more resilient. Practice gratitude and mindfulness, and you’ll begin to see that even the difficult parts of the journey are blessings in the end.
Create a culture of gratitude within your company through your own action and choices. Allow the wholesome circle of appreciation to grow through continuous activity. This approach to leadership communication is transformational in that it changes attitudes — both your own and those of the people around you.
What methods of expressing gratitude to your employees have you found effective? Let me know in the comments — I’d greatly appreciate it.