2010 November

Kind words are free, and can have a great positive impact on morale and performance. So why are they so rare?

We associate feedback with the boss-employee relationship, and that is unfortunate. There are lots of bosses out there, and most suck at providing feedback of any sort. The opportunity doesn’t lie with our bosses.

Instead, lets expand our thinking beyond the boss-employee relationship (if you happen to be a boss, you can play too):

Who Looks Up to You?

If you are a humble sort –like myself– this can be a bit of a struggle. Grab your scribbling device of choice, and create two columns with the following titles: “Name“, “Why he/she looks up to me“. Don’t do this on your whiteboard.

Some ideas for the columns:

Have you been doing your job longer than some of those around you?
Are you recognized as an expert or talented in a particular area?
When you have received positive feedback (particularly in public), what was it for?
Do you have unique experience that could be valued by others?
Have you accomplished something that the others around you have not?
Do you have a skill at identifying growth in others?
Are you in charge of accomplishing a task that involves a team?
Do you see valuable behaviours that aren’t being recognized by the business?

Come up with a minimum of five names. For the next month, give these people (whether at home, work, or elsewhere) one piece of positive feedback each week. Put a reminder in your calendar if you have to. Use the second column to help frame your feedback in a context that will be meaningful for the recipient.