As an expert in the power of gratitude it’s important to understand the nuance between saying thank you and gratitude. Let’s take a look at saying thank you. Saying thank you and expressing appreciation for a job well done and or a project completed or for doing “your” job well, fosters self-validation within employees. It states eloquently that they are valuable. When your employees feel appreciated, valued and self-validated, even though they are receiving a paycheck for the work they do, they’re happy. The verbal acknowledgement “thank you” simply states “I see you and all that you are doing to contribute to the bottom line…and it’s good” And when said with authenticity, this raises the morale of the work environment. Saying thank you and expressing gratitude has the ability to change the physical, mental and emotional dynamic of how people feel about themselves.
This has a knock-on-effect and impacts how they will show up in both their home and work environment. Let’s face it, if things are not going well at home or in their personal life, it will eventually spill over into their work life…and vise versa. Saying thank you positively impacts how they interact and communicate with other work colleagues and customers/clients. It frees mental energy to be channeled into the creative process. i.e. “how can I do what I do better and more efficiently?” It builds self confidence, along with initiative, cultivating new thinking and new ideas. Again, the nuance here is huge. New thinking is being open to possibilities. New ideas are what come forth from new thinking. The natural progression of saying thank you impacts productivity and the bottom line in a positive way. It’s important to note, saying thank you must always come from an internal space of authentic and honest “gratitude,” because people have the innate ability to recognize when someone is being disingenuous. If you don’t feel it, don’t say it!
Let’s take a look at gratitude. Gratitude is an internal state of being that’s a choice. You get to choose the degree of thankfulness you are experiencing and expressing for the way your life is unfolding. Seeing the glass as half full or half empty is an analogy used to illustrate gratitude. The fact of the matter is, it doesn’t matter if the glass is half empty or half full, where true gratitude starts is in being thankful, grateful and happy that you own a glass.
Gratitude levels the playing field in both one’s professional and personal life. This means when you choose to adopt gratitude as a state of being, a way of thinking, living and view your life’s circumstance, you are acknowledging that no matter what happens, it’s all for the highest good and the betterment of self. Not always easy to do in the face of what you may be experiencing, yet, through choice this can be accomplished.
Gratitude clears the field of hurdle that will hinder your progress to your desired goal. It puts the spotlight on success. It removes you from the hamster wheel. It negates the need to ague. It promotes clarity and decisive action. It nurtures resilience and the ability to bounce back…stronger, more knowledgeable and wiser. It moves the emphasis from fear based living to courageous encouragement. Gratitude creates the space for authentic interpersonal and personal dialog. It creates internal happiness which is expressed as external happiness. Happy people thrive. Gratitude is the internal thinking process and thank you is the external manifestation.
Implementing a gratitude system within the work place.
Gratitude journal for employees:
Gift each employee with their own gratitude journal:
Explain at the end of each day write 5 – 10 things in their gratitude journal that they are grateful for. At the end of the month review all the entries. This helps to foster a greater understanding of the gratitude journaling process and how it will benefit them on a personal level. When they are vested personally your employees will vest professionally.
On a larger scale for the work environment:
There are so many ways to implement a gratitude system within the work place, no matter how big or small your organization. There are departments and departments within departments. There are positions and work stations and the list goes on. The key to success is that ALL employees must participate. They must write at least one thing that they are grateful for.
The organizational gratitude journal can be set up in a multitude of ways. Use a guest registry book placed in a communal area with good lighting. Or make use of digital technology. How about an internal gratitude email or text which everyone has to respond to or Whatapp? What about creating a gratitude web page attached to your website that requires login and password? You can create a private Facebook group setting or private pinterest board. Or old school dry eraser board. Or a mashup of all the above.
Get creative! Explain the process, outline the benefits and that everyone has to participate. Make sure your leadership is on board and that they remind the people who report to them.
Contact Dr. Wendy via email Drwendy@thelawsofattractioninaction.com or 702-425-8589