Two Small But Powerful Words
THANK YOU. They are such common words that we often utter them without even thinking about it, or really even meaning it. But, when you look someone in the eyes and really thank them, you can change their day.
Feeling appreciated is a need we all have, at any age. When we feel appreciated at work by others, we feel positive about ourselves and a deeper sense of connection with our colleagues. And when we feel good about how others perceive our work, we are motivated to continue. It’s true that what comes around goes around. When you look for the good and point it out in others, the joy it brings them will naturally lift your mood too.
TRY THIS:
Be specific when you say thank you. For example, if your coworker picks up some extra chores around the office, don’t just say, “Thanks for cleaning.” Instead, take it even further and say something like, “Thank you for putting away all of those files! They had piled up, and you did a ton of work. I appreciate you.”
Or instead of just thanking a coworker for taking notes at the last meeting, give them a few more details about how that helped you such as “Thank you for taking notes at the last meeting. Since that meeting, the whole team has used your notes to add to our action plan and we’ve made progress so much faster because of it. I hope you know you’re appreciated!”
And since we are talking about be thankful and appreciating others, I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all of you for your dedication to improving elder care and for taking our classes and sharing your comments and ideas with us. I’d like to thank all of our wonderful clients who take on a lot of extra work to make changes happen in their communities. And last but not least, thanks to my great team for your hard work, support, and patience. You make it fun to come to work each day!
