“Wanting to be recognized is a basic human need. As such, to acknowledge and recognize are key human drivers of employee performance and engagement”. – Lynda Monk, Author

Why it Matters

Teammates need to feel pride in what they do. Acknowledgement not only gives
your team a sense of pride, but motivation to be accomplished. Acknowledgement
creates a culture for others to step-up, so they get recognized as well. This causes
great performance to become contagious within an organization.

Leadership Insights

Acknowledgment also needs to be given effectively or it can actually backfire and
could become a demotivator. Dan Pink’s Video: The Surprising Truth About What
Motivates Us, (11 minutes), points to giving effective acknowledgement that
motivates.

Leadership Challenge

Effective acknowledgement should include these 2 key components:

1. Be specific about a contribution that the person you are acknowledging
   made.
2. Speak to the impact that the contribution had to the team, company or to a
   client.

Example:

“Lisa, last week you responded to our newest client’s request within 3 hours. Your
sense of urgency and responsiveness really honors our value of being a client
centric organization. They were very impressed and want to do more business with
us. Thank you!”

Being specific in an acknowledgment may empower others to use their “gifts of
greatness”, like responsiveness, to make a difference.

Leadership Strategy

Acknowledge 5 employees or colleagues this week and make sure you follow the
two (2) steps above.

Awesome Reference

The Powerful Impact of Acknowledging Good Work – https://www.inc.com/laura-garnett/acknowledgment-the-new-charisma-at-work.html

Have an Awesome Month Leading with Impact!