There were times when the monthly bank transfer was the most important form of recognition. Anyone who was able to get feedback was allowed to be happy. Today, appreciation has become one of the most important management tools. You can use it to have a positive influence on the behavior of all employees and significantly increase the intrinsic motivation of entire teams. In this article, we have summarized how you can express appreciation and the different forms it can take.
Those who receive praise and recognition for their work are correspondingly motivated to continue earning this appreciation. A counter-example: If you only receive negative criticism for your performance, you focus on the undesirable behavior. Praise and positive feedback change the focus of attention to what needs to be achieved.
Good work is still far too often taken for granted. As a manager, you should recognize and value outstanding performance in particular. Furthermore, not only top performance should be recognized , but also consistently good work.
Appreciation is not limited to positive feedback in a feedback meeting. Instead, there are numerous ways to express your appreciation to an employee.
Appreciation is often "misused" for other purposes. For example, it serves as an introduction to a subsequent criticism, which leads employees to automatically associate praise with criticism. After words of praise, they are literally waiting to see what criticism awaits them. You should never use words of appreciation to motivate employees to do unpleasant tasks. This is a form of manipulation that misses the point of appreciation by a mile. Excessive and incorrect words of appreciation also defeat the purpose.
Appreciation is not a benefit that you can transfer to an account as payment. It is a form of interpersonal interaction that should be used in a very targeted manner. Never underestimate your counterpart's intuition. If your appreciation is not sincere, is given in the wrong place or is exaggerated, the employee will automatically sense this. It is best to stick to the facts. Be specific about what has impressed you so that the feedback is received unequivocally. It's okay to show some emotion so that the other person can sense your honest enthusiasm. The more credible your statement will be in the end.
In leadership, appreciation is the tool you use to motivate employees and strengthen their loyalty to the company. If you would like to be encouraged to integrate appreciation as a leadership tool into your management style, why not benefit from personal coaching?