... "Thank you!"
When was the last time you expressed gratitude toward your employees?
A study by polling firm Penn Shoen Berland found that more than 90% of those polled agreed that grateful people are more fulfilled, lead richer lives, and are more likely to have friends. Furthermore, 93% agreed that grateful bosses were more likely to be successful. However, despite knowing how beneficial gratitude can be, it was also found that less than 15% express daily gratitude to friends or colleagues.
Interestingly, gratitude can also help boost employee productivity. A study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology found that managers who expressed gratitude boosted productivity by 50%! This is because gratitude helps people feel valued – a strong motivator for engagement and productivity.
Embedding Gratitude into Your Company Culture
When we normalize being grateful toward our teams and coworkers, we begin to see a happier and tighter-knit workplace. This is partly because gratitude helps nurture stronger relationships; when employees and managers show appreciation for each other, it boosts a sense of belonging.
Here are some ways to cultivate gratitude in your workplace:
Model gratitude by regularly thanking employees for their work or pointing out how something they did contributed positively toward the shared goal you’re working toward.
Express gratitude in different ways – this can be verbally and face to face or over email or chat. You can thank people privately or in front of others. Sometimes gratitude can also come in the form of a bonus. Take note of what expression of gratitude your employees are most responsive to and act accordingly.
Start or end your weekly meetings with a round of gratitude. Allow everyone to share one work-related thing or person they’re grateful for.
Create a dedicated virtual room or chat thread where employees can congratulate each other or express gratitude for one another.
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Adeola Mead is a Naturopathic Physician with 15+ years of clinical and corporate consultancy experience.
Vitaliteam Workplace Wellness provides and curates health/wellness services and experiences centered on holistic, personalized care for individuals while fostering social connection and positive team cultures.
We are a “Boutique EAP” agency that is hyper focused on identifying and comprehensively addressing the root cause issues underlying individual and organizational health concerns.
Contact us for a complimentary health consult or corporate wellness discovery call.