Serve Up Some Kind Words Today

Time to Read: 1 min...   

The following short email string, with just the names redacted, was sent by a nurse to the Lead Cook at a health care facility. The cook doesn’t report to the nurse, they just work together in each of their respective roles. But the nurse noticed and wanted to acknowledge the cook for the good job he was doing for their patients.

Here’s their exchange:

“Hi ----,
I want to thank you for all the hard work you do to prepare meals for our clients. It makes a huge difference for them when they have tasty meals and can look forward to a healthy selection.
I really appreciate all you do.
Kind regards,
--------”

“--------,
Thank you for the kind words, it is so much easier to do my job when I get to work with people like you, that I am truly happy to see each day.
----”

This nurse didn’t have to do this - it wasn’t a box to check on her performance review and nobody knew she did it – in fact it would have been easier not to bother. Instead, she took the few seconds necessary to pop a note to a colleague and make him feel better.

This is the kind of thing leaders do and encourage their employees to do – appreciate each other. Research shows that when people are acknowledged they perform better, interpersonal relations improve, and they are more productive. And it doesn’t cost you anything other than a few seconds of your time.

Action Step:

• Send a short, appreciative note to someone (employee, colleague, family, friend…) – do it today.

Charles St.John

P.S. Tell me what you think – add your comments below.