Are you ready to transform the way you give and receive feedback? Join me on a journey through the art of feedback in a three-part blog series. Discover the power of praise and recognition, delve into the realm of tough, performance-related feedback, and unlock the secrets of coaching for progress. Get ready to elevate your communication skills, foster growth, and drive success in every aspect of your life. Stay tuned for practical tips, real-life examples, and actionable strategies to master the art of feedback and unleash your – and your teams - full potential. Are you ready to revolutionize the way you approach feedback? Let's embark on this transformative journey together to be better Next Gen Leaders!
The Power of Praise
I am making some basic assumptions right from the start. That you have been reading my blog, possibly even seeing me speak live, or at least, being exposed to the messaging in the High Ground Coaching emails and social media channels. If you haven’t, please take some time to read some of the past blog posts, especially the Emotionally Intelligence and the Communicating with EQ posts.
These assumptions lead me to believe that you are an emotionally intelligent leader (at least most of the time) and you are doing three things for your team now:
1. Taking an authentic interest
2. Asking good questions – staying curious
3. Are a good listener
People (on your team, in your family, at your community organizations) will at this point be telling you all you need to know about how to lead them. You will know how to push the “heartbeat” button for these individuals.
This “heartbeat” button is more powerful than sex and money. However, your HR department would frown upon you going around passing out these two tokens. But you have another powerful tool.
People work harder for praises than raises.
Consider these points:
The #1 reason why companies lose top talent is they don’t feel appreciated by the leader.
80% of leaders say they frequently praise employees.
of these employees, 20% agree they are frequently praised.
9 of 10 employees feel unrecognized by their supervisors.
80% of these same supervisors said they recognize their employees enough.
This is the great recognition gap.
"The Business of Business is People"
Herb Kelleher – SW Airlines
If you are a leader, you are not leading pnl’s or systems. You are leading people. You are in the people business. If you want your people to create success – they need to be working at their highest potential.
This is an art. If only there were a big red button…
There is! This big red button (earlier referred to as the “heartbeat”) is Praise and Recognition.
Here are 6 keys to praising like a pro:
1. Be specific. Don’t just say, “Good Job.” Refer to a specific incident or communication or pushback. “Your pushback on the new social media strategy was excellent. Thank you for helping us think and talk through that concept.”
2. Be Timely. Praise is not just for review time. People need to know how they are being seen, heard and understood in the moment. Keep notes for review time, but share in the present.
3. Be Unique. Praise the progress, don’t wait for the final product. Finding ways to praise through a project will lead to increased performance throughout – getting both parties the results they desire.
4. Be Balanced. Too much of anything is not good – water, oxygen, love. Praise new employees, those trying new tasks, those making extra effort or exhibiting the behaviors you want others to emulate. Don’t gush – have a reason.
5. Praise Publicly. Possibly even consider instead of only praising the individual, tell their supervisor, parent, partner or spouse. Let them bask.
6. Systemize Praise. Have praise be part of your culture. Celebrate wins, loses and wows!
(More on each of the 6 steps will soon be available through the Next Gen Leadership Book Club Series – keep an eye out for announcements.)
The easiest and least expensive thing you can do to motivate, encourage and reward not only you’re A players, but your entire team is to be sure you are praising often and affectively.
Praise and compliments are like potato chips…….
This is the first blog post in a series of three.
Feedback Matters: The Art of Elevating Success Through Acknowledgement, Improvement, and Growth.
If you would like to learn more about how to foster this within your organization, feel free to reach out.
This is a part of the Next Gen Leadership Program which is meant to help you Inspire Leaders to Create Leaders within your organization. Reach out today to see how we can work together to strengthen your team!
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