“Appreciation is a wonderful thing. It makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well.”
-Voltaire
Most of our parents taught us to say “Please” and “Thank you” when we were young (I know mine did!). Why is it that so many managers forget this elementary concept? I believe it’s because oftentimes employees are taken for granted. They are expected to come to work, do what they’re told and not ask any questions. Yes, employees are expected to do their job, but they should be appreciated as often as possible.
One day as I was leaving work, my manager came up to me and said “Thank you.” I didn’t recall doing anything exceptional that day, so I asked: “For what?”. The answer was: “Just for being here today.”. To be completely honest, I found that a bit odd, but it was still nice to hear. When I was a manager asking someone to complete a task, I always said “Please” and when it was done I made sure I personally went and said “Thank you.” to the employee. Even if the task was part of their job description, I said “Thanks”. If an employee has gone beyond what is expected of them, I strongly recommend putting it in writing. Whenever an employee was working for another department or manager I would take time to write a ‘Thank you’ email to the employee and CC their manager. It’s always nice to feel appreciated. Employees will also feel more motivated if they know that their good work is being noticed and valued.
Just as I was leaving a company someone in upper management sent me an email saying: “I might not have mentioned it to you often enough, but I’ve definitely mentioned it to the others [management]: you’ve always gone far beyond what was asked and you always did it with a lot of enthusiasm. This quality will get you very far in life.”. Once again, hearing something like that made me feel better and made me realize that people ARE noticing the fact that I always go the extra mile.
As you probably guessed, saying “Thank you” doesn’t only apply to managers. If your colleagues are doing a good job, let them know. And whenever you finish an interview, always say “Thank you for your time”!
“A simple ‘Thank you’ goes a very long way.”
-Me
PS – Someone asked me why I quote myself. Allow me to use another quote to answer that:
“I often quote myself. It adds spice to my conversation.”
-George Bernard Shaw
