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For better relationships, take notice of praiseworthy effort, performance, or results. Something's bound to surface that deserves a compliment. If not, remind yourself to look harder. |
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Tip 847: Consider emotional "Behavior" as worthy of praise. |
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For a customer service rep to keep her cool under pressure with an irate customer can take as much presence of mind as designing an ad campaign. And it can be as important, as well. When it comes to praise, don't limit your thinking to action or performance. Examples: "I appreciate your admitting the error. Many people would have pretended they didn't know what had happened to the machine." "Thank you for being honest about the situation and your misjudgment." ''Your reaction to the criticism in the staff meeting this morning was commendable. You zeroed in on the issues and discarded the guff without defensiveness." "I admire the way you stood firm in your position yesterday, but did not become aggressive with the customer. That takes finesse and patience that many people don't have." |
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Tip 848: Follow the army's lead in giving medals. |
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Soldiers earn medals for everything from grooming themselves well to doing an assigned task well to saving a life. The benefits soldiers receive from medals include recognition of personal effort, security about the job, approval by others, a sense of belonging and camaraderie, the desire to continue to develop to the highest level of personal achievement. The list closely resembles Maslow's list of basic human needs, doesn't it? In the civilian world, praise can be as meaningful as medals. |
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Tip 849: Award your superiors with praise. |
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Bosses usually dish out the praise to their staff, but that doesn't mean they would not benefit from and appreciate kind, sincere words from others. Recently, a two-star general in the U.S. Army arrived at the post to conduct the promotion ceremony for several lower-ranking officers. Afterward, with most people awed at the general's presence, few people moved in his direction. Finally one colonel who was most impressed with the ceremony approached the general and commented, "Sir, may I give you a little feedback?" |
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The general cleared his throat and nodded. The colonel continued, "As you can imagine, I've seen hundreds of these ceremonies and most are |
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