One of my all-time favorite leadership experts is Ken Blanchard, co-author of The One Minute Manager–a classic that is always worthy of another read.
Ken is somewhat famous for his constant reminder to leaders to “catch people doing something right and tell them about it.”
Here’s a brief video sharing an idea for making the process part of your daily routine at your credit union.
ACTION ADVICE: Whether you choose to use dimes or some other tracking method, try this approach for the next two weeks: take time day to deliver personal appreciation to at least 5 team members each day…make it specific to their performance, deliver as close as possible to that performance, and don’t worry about whether others hear it or not. You’ll be amazed at the results, and as you keep doing it you’ll become better at it and your culture will begin to focus on catching people doing something right as people follow your example!
Reminder: You can deliver the message face-to-face, you can send a handwritten note, you can leave a personal voice mail, or (as a last resort) you can send an e-mail…just make sure you make it personal and to the point, recognizing the person for something specific that they did that was in line with the goals of your credit union.
It’s Your Turn…Tell us what you do to catch people doing something right, or share an experience of the impact it had on you when someone caught you doing something right. Post your comment and help us all learn from your experiences.
