When I think back on my time in the military, I think of it fondly. This is counter intuitive because the Army was not easy, and spending two years in combat zone deployments generally shouldn’t lead to “fond” memories. One of the main reasons I look back on it with positivity is the recognition I received for doing my job. In fact, if I’m ever feeling weak, I can just read some of the awards and accolades I received, and it gives me an instant boost of confidence and inspiration!
What I want for you as a leader reading this, is that you are able to create the same fond memories, confidence and inspiration in the people that work for you. One day when you retire I want the people that chose to work for you to remember how awesome working for you was. I want your people to appreciate you as a leader because of the way you recognized and appreciated them. Recognition will not only help you leave a positive legacy, it will also help you get even better results from each individual on your team.
When my team of coaches and I conduct business cultural assessments, one of the most common complaints we hear from employees is, “They never thank us or tell us what we are doing right.”
When I ask leaders why they don’t recognize, they often say:
1. I never got recognized, and I don’t need recognition.
2. I have a hard time telling people ‘good job’ for doing what I pay them to do.
3. When I recognize people for doing great, they often get worse, so I stopped.
What I want for you in reading this is that you identify how this B.S. (belief system) is holding you back. Let’s unpack each of these!
1. You don’t need recognition.
Who is leadership about, YOU or THEM?
Leadership is about the people you manage, and hopefully choose to lead. When you find out that they were recognized growing up, and as such equate recognition to gratitude and love which motivates them and makes them feel valued, now you have to decide. Option one: Do you manage in your own image, making it about you and avoid recognition because you don’t need it? Option two: Do you lead each individual by adapting your approach to what inspires them? Which way gets you more loyalty, happier employees, and better results?
Choose option 1, you are choosing to manage; choose option 2, you are choosing to lead.
2. You don’t want to recognize people for doing their jobs.
Yes, people are supposed to do their jobs… Then why does the military award and recognize people for doing their jobs?
As human beings, we have a deep-seated need to fit into society. When we know we are accepted as part of the tribe, our brains reward us with hormones that make us feel safe. When you recognize your people, you are letting them know that they are doing right by your tribe. This fulfills one of the most basic human needs: the need to be part of a community. And if a human’s needs are being met by being part of that community, they’re likely to stay in it longer. What does that mean for your company? Employee retention!
3. When I recognize people they seem to get worst.
When you do something flawlessly, the next time you do that same activity, what are the odds you can do it better vs the odds you will do it worse?
In statistics, there is a principle called “regression to the mean.” This mathematical truth applies to performance in this way: when you do something at the bottom 1% of your capability, the next time you do it, you are 99% likely to get better. On the contrary, when you do something at peak performance, the top 1% of your capability, there is a 99% chance that the next time you do it, you get worse. At the end of the day, the more people do something, the more their performance averages out because most instances will be in the middle.
The point is, if someone performs poorly (for them), they are likely to get better regardless of whether you yell at them or not. When someone performs at a high level, whether you recognize them or not, they are likely to get worse. But what if what they performed well was by accident? Meaning that someone’s reasons for success are a blind spot for them. Only through recognition do they have the chance to identify what they did well and potentially duplicate it!
How to Give Proper Recognition:
There are three easy steps to enacting recognition in the most impactful way. First, you must be specific about what they did/and are doing well. Because “Good job” isn’t clear enough. Being specific eliminates all assumptions about what they did well.
Next, share with them how their actions, behaviors, or attitude makes a positive impact on the team, business, and clients. This helps them understand the value they bring and how their success is tied to others.
Finish by telling them what’s in it for them if they continue the behaviors. Since we all operate on the W.I.I.F.M. (What’s in it for me?) this further connects the dots on what they personally get out of doing what’s right.
Here’s an example I recently used with a dealership coaching client. We are helping the dealership launch their service to sales BDC, and the new agent absolutely crushed it her first month.
“Lashae, the way you focused on your phone skills and prospecting efforts to generate 28 service to sales transactions for your dealership was awe-inspiring!
That made a massive positive impact on your dealership’s inventory, giving the sales team more great used cars to sell! You also helped your sales team pick up another $20,000 in commissions, helping the team pay their bills!
If you continue to master the phones while putting forth that level of effort, you will be able to grow this department, add a team under you and become a manager in your dealer group!”
Her response to the message above was, “This month I’m aiming for 40!” The three-step recognition process worked.
Here are the coaching questions you can use to create your own masterful recognition for each person on your team:
1. What specifically did they do well (attitude, actions, behaviors, and results)?
2. How does that impact their team and/or the business?
3. What’s in it for them if they continue doing that?
It’s important to note that if you’re a manager who notices the problems more than the positives, you are NOT broken. I’ll even go as far as to say you’re probably not an evil dictator of a manager, or even a pessimistic jerk! Noticing problems first is just how our human brains work. It’s easier to notice the problems, because our brains are always looking for the danger in our environment to protect us. That being said, every game has both good and bad plays and it’s equally important to recognize the good as it is to correct and coach on the bad.
The benefits of proper recognition are happier, motivated employees that stay on your team longer and duplicate desired attitudes, actions, and behaviors! This type of leadership activity leads to consistent, sustained results. Furthermore, the more things your employees do right as a result of your recognition, the less reactive firefighting you need to do as a manager. So, remember, recognition is a very powerful tool in a leader’s arsenal.
This is a chapter in Sean Kelley’s upcoming book “Inspired Satisfaction – How Leaders Build Winning Business Cultures.” For more information on Sean’s leadership techniques, check out “www.L2coach.com” Seans writing is written by a human, for humans, with no A.I. content.