A message from Sandy. The economy may be showing small signs of improvement, but that doesn’t mean employers are rushing to offer raises. Consider and old-time, feel good technique to motivate overburdened staff: praise! Bob Nelson states “It’s probably the most powerful driver of performance known to mankind. Whether it’s an employee or a spouse, you get more of what you want when you praise someone.”

Today, everyone needs emotional reinforcement. Employees may be stretched to their limits, working faster, doing more and with fewer resources. Unfortunately, the only time we may hear from the boss is when you’ve made a mistake. I think we can all agree, we are lucky to have a job, however overloaded employees make it all the more important for praise to become a daily habit. Giving praise isn’t as easy as you might think, it needs to be sincere and unique to the individual.  Start paying attention and catch people doing things right! Here are a few examples:

• At TRW in San Diego, managers buy a piece of junk at the flea market, like a lamp and pass it around throughout the year to recognize a job well done. The winner can decorate it to give it a personal touch.
• At Bank of America, part of their motivation program includes recognition points which employees can  redeem for gifts.
• At  the Universal Orlando theme park, mangers give S.A.Y. IT! cards, which stands for Someone Appreciates You. These are redeemable for movie tickets, dinners and other gifts.     

Perhaps the most effective praise doesn’t come with a coupon, but rather from human interaction. What do you suppose the impact of that behavior would be?  In your experience, what’s the best way to praise employees?