22 November 2024
We wish you a fantastic New year : Happiness, Love, Friendship, Gratitude and lots of Projects.
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Gratitude is not innate. In fact, very few children express it : only 21% of 6-year-olds does ! The concept of Gratitude and the attribution of responsibility is consolidated between the ages of 7 and 10. It is a feeling of affection, an acknowledgement of a service rendered, or a benefit received. Workplace Gratitude is neither feedback nor an evaluation : it moves people in their entirety.
This concept implies an awareness that the positive elements or successes achieved are due to third parties, colleagues, staff, managers, partners, or external suppliers. In the workplace, where competition is often the norm, it is understandable that Gratitude is not spontaneously expressed. What’s more, expressing feelings has long been frowned upon. Fortunately, this perception is changing.
Introducing Gratitude in the workplace means making a commitment to an environment where every employee feels valued for who they are and not just for what they do. Values as human qualities are put forward and not just values directly linked to the performance of tasks.
More and more HR departments are providing training in empathy, Gratitude, well-being, mindfulness, and stress management.
Lack of recognition is the number one demotivating factor, even before pay, as Frédérick Herzberg showed in his study on motivating factors. Purely salary-related recognition (bonuses, increases, etc.) has a very short-term effect, because once employees are used to their compensation, they become demotivated again. This shows that the quality of human relations and their expression are essential to the effective teams. Scientific research goes even further: a lack of recognition could have a negative impact on health.
Dr Peterson, a pioneer of positive psychology, asked his students to write a letter of gratitude. The letter had to be addressed to someone who had meant something to them in life. He found that the students who played the game felt a lasting sense of well-being. This effect was reinforced if they read the letter aloud. He also noted that the person receiving the letter was also happy. Their well-being in turn radiated out to others. Expressing your gratitude to others is much more than just a mark of politeness. It’s part of a virtuous circle in which gratitude becomes a source of well-being for both the person who shows it it and the person who receives it.
1/ Work on communication to better listen to each other.
2/ Involving employees in operations and decision-making processes.
3/ Take into account what employees say to improve their daily lives.
4/ Apply the same rules to everyone as fairly as possible.
5/ Be transparent about decisions and objectives.
6/ Train employees in Gratitude and introduce the “handshakes” a day.
To help your customers feel better and develop Gratitude in their workplace or develop their own, you’ll find a easy to use virtual card game in our shop: Coaching personal development
(cc) Outilsducoach 2024, articles may be freely copied and distributed subject to mention and link to the original source.
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