How do you show appreciation to your team? Do you want to learn something that will make a meaningful impact at your next group meeting? Dale Carnegie is the author of How to Win Friends and Influence People and this is the number two best selling book of all time. One of his 30 human relation principles featured is to “Show genuine and honest appreciation to others.”
This is an exercise I shared with a leader who is participating in our Virtual Professional Development Series. She want to shake things up at her next staff meeting and do something different. This is the outline I shared with her:
Start with a quote about the importance of appreciation.
→We are going to do that together today in our team meeting.
→Everyone please take a blank note card.
→At the top of the card, write your first and last name.
→Under your name, write: I appreciate you because…
→Now pass your card to someone else.
→Pass it again, and one last time.
→The goal is to end up with one of your team member’s card, instead of yours.
→Now, look at the name of the card and think about that person’s qualities or characteristics that you admire or appreciate.
(Give an example of how you see that quality or characteristic demonstrated at work.)
Note: You might want to give an example of one of the leaders that is not present:
For example, “Ms. Director is dedicated because she provides excellent customer service to each and every person she comes in contact with throughout the company.”
(Give the group 2-3 minutes to write. Bring the group back together when pens stop)
→Ask “Who will volunteer first to read their card?”
→After they finish, ask them to hand the card to the person and then that person reads their card and so on.
(Close with a statement about appreciation for their genuine, honest feedback)
Whalaa! There you go and your appreciation exercise is complete!
Be willing to Learn. Grow. Lead. and you will go to the next level of performance!
I’m here to help you and your team on your journey!
Blessings,
Merikay
