Mark Hamade

There are two kinds of motivators that get results from employees: internal motivators and external motivators.  External motivators are things like raises while internal motivators are things like job satisfaction.  Do you know which one gets the best results?  Employees have said that the thing they want most from their jobs is recognition for the things they do well.  It is no wonder that compliments will get better results than criticisms!

When we recognize people for what they do right, instead of what they do wrong, it builds self-esteem.  When people are confident they are more likely to take on new challenges and give a job their full effort.  Use compliments as one of your daily strategies for improving staff job performance and you will see more results.

There are several strategies that you can implement when using compliments:

1. Use a compliment to encourage improvement in other areas.  For example, if a staff member has utilized her organizational skills to get a project completely efficiently you could say, “Great job on organizing this project.  I love how you ________!  Could you use those same skills to help us on the XYZ project?” This will show the employee that they are good at something and point out a place where they could use those skills to improve in another area.
2. Reinforce past positive behavior.  Reinforcement goes a long way because it lets employees know that you have not forgotten about their past successes.  If you were to tell an employee, “Thanks for getting this completed before the deadline.  I really appreciated how in the past several projects you have worked on you have put forth the extra effort to have tasks completed ahead of time,” they will feel that you have not only noticed their current behavior but their past efforts as well.  This will encourage them to continue with the behavior that you have recognized.
3. Show employees how their efforts are contributing to company goals.  Employees like to know that they are a part of the bigger picture and that their efforts are making a difference in the business.  Instead of just saying, “Thanks,” trying saying, “Thanks for the extra hours you put into this task.  Because of you we may have gained a new client!”

Compliments motivate employees to improve and to continue their efforts.  When you can catch them in the act and you are genuine, they are even more valuable.  Watch for opportunities to compliment staff on their efforts and make your compliments genuine and you will find that your employee morale will increase and performance records will improve.