Bright Lights - Tips & Solutions

Praising Others

As the old saying goes, “You can catch more flies with honey than you can with vinegar.” In other words, you will get far more from your employees by catching them doing what’s right, rather than catching them doing what’s wrong. Praise and encouragement will do far more to reinforce desired behavior than criticism ever will.

However, we must be genuine and timely in our praise in order for it to have any real positive impact. If you can not be genuine in your praise, you might as well save your breath. Too many employees have been burnt in the past by false praise and have learned to question the motives of the people giving the praise.

Genuine praise is a critical tool in both developing and maintaining positive employee morale and engagement. However, praise alone (i.e., general statements of appreciation, “pats on the back,” etc.) often falls short of the mark. Moreover, if given continuously or without specific examples it can seem shallow and/or contrived. What’s worse, it may even send the message that you really don’t know specifically what the individual does or how they are actually performing.

On the other hand, providing “encouragement” in addition to praise can go a long way to building self-esteem and pride in one’s work. For example, being specific about a positive interaction you see between an employee and customer or between two employees not only tells the employee that they are doing a good job, but it also lets them know that you are noticing what they are doing. We actually believe that encouragement is one of the shortest training classes you can provide. For example, when you notice an employee answer the telephone and take a call with a customer who is obviously upset and the employee handles the call professionally, with care and resolves the issue without passing it on to someone else you can pull them aside and share exactly what you observed. This communicates to the employee that you care enough about them to notice what they are doing. You are also willing to share positive feedback with them. Encouragement also lets the employee know what you expect from them and how you want them to behave in the future. There is an added benefit to encouragement that often goes unnoticed. There is a positive impact not only on the specific employee but on the employees around them. Other employees see or hear about the positive feedback the employee received and begin to reflect similar behaviors.

What are some of the ways in which you praise and encourage your employees?

What are some examples of situations in which you have felt honestly praised and encouraged by your supervisor?