Praise Loudly Blame Softly
Praise is something that is a powerful motivating force that is highly desired by everyone and what’s best is that it costs us nothing to give. The two main problems that most employers and supervisors make when giving praise is that
-They combine both praise and criticism together, canceling out the positive effects of the praise, and
-They often concentrate on giving very detailed and specific criticisms, while only giving general praise. General praise equals no praise at all because it simply does not register in a person’s mind as being sincere. That is why many supervisors believe that they do in fact shower their subordinates with praise, but they fail to take into account that their delivery system for that praise is flawed.
-Praise causes the brain to release some of its own natural opiates. But just because the best things in life are free, doesn’t mean they aren’t challenging to do right. It’s far simpler to hand out a bonus than it is to create a business cultures in which sincere “thank yours” are a regular occurrence.
In order for praise to be effective it must be:
Being Timely[/b]
This means it should be:
Given while the behavior is still fresh
Given when you have time to make the praise complete
Praise should immediately follow a laudable behavior. If you wait two weeks to commend an employee on a job well-done, there’s a good chance it will come out sounding generic. Like you forgot about it and are just saying it for merit’s sake.
You want to mention specific behaviors and actions you were proud of that led to their achievements.
Being Sincere[/b]
There are many ways to give praise, but for it to be effective, it has to be sincere. I read a delightful piece about the president of a company who praised his formidable employees by mailing handwritten notes to their homes.
Of course, employers should never underestimate the degree to which workers value genuine and kind words delivered face-to-face.
By giving precise praise in a setting where you give the employee an opportunity to gauge your words, you help found a relationship of trust.
Right Tone[/b]
Tone is about how you say or write something, or what you appear to mean by your body language. When giving praise you want to make sure you are giving the praise in a tone that is informed, professional and sincere. If you are face-to-face with the person, factors including your facial expressions, the volume of your voice, the pace of your phrases, and the pitch of your voice contribute to your tone. In writing, (the easiest place to get misunderstood), your choice of vocabulary and the length of your sentences and paragraphs, set the tone for your message.
Being Specific[/b]
Giving praise is more than just giving a compliment. Compliments are great for employee morale, but if you really want to encourage and reinforce a behavior, praise needs to be specific.
Not Overdone[/b]
In cognitive neuroscience the phenomenon is referred to as semantic satiation. Repetition causes a word or phrase to temporarily lose meaning for the listener, who can only process the speech as repeated meaningless sounds.
Not Combined With Criticism[/b]
If there is one simple rule to remember when giving praise, it’s to avoid using the word, “but” immediately after you’ve complimented the person. Many of us are familiar with the ‘sandwich’ model for providing feedback, but it doesn’t work if you truly just want to recognize someone. If you are trying to sugar-coat criticism by masking it with praise, you will fail miserably in both departments. There is a time for corrective feedback. There is a time for praise. Choose your time wisely so people trust that when you say something, you mean it.
Praise is something that is a powerful motivating force that is highly desired by everyone and what’s best is that it costs us nothing to give. The two main problems that most employers and supervisors make when giving praise is that
-They combine both praise and criticism together, canceling out the positive effects of the praise, and
-They often concentrate on giving very detailed and specific criticisms, while only giving general praise. General praise equals no praise at all because it simply does not register in a person’s mind as being sincere. That is why many supervisors believe that they do in fact shower their subordinates with praise, but they fail to take into account that their delivery system for that praise is flawed.
-Praise causes the brain to release some of its own natural opiates. But just because the best things in life are free, doesn’t mean they aren’t challenging to do right. It’s far simpler to hand out a bonus than it is to create a business cultures in which sincere “thank yours” are a regular occurrence.
In order for praise to be effective it must be:
Being Timely[/b]
This means it should be:
Given while the behavior is still fresh
Given when you have time to make the praise complete
Praise should immediately follow a laudable behavior. If you wait two weeks to commend an employee on a job well-done, there’s a good chance it will come out sounding generic. Like you forgot about it and are just saying it for merit’s sake.
You want to mention specific behaviors and actions you were proud of that led to their achievements.
Being Sincere[/b]
There are many ways to give praise, but for it to be effective, it has to be sincere. I read a delightful piece about the president of a company who praised his formidable employees by mailing handwritten notes to their homes.
Of course, employers should never underestimate the degree to which workers value genuine and kind words delivered face-to-face.
By giving precise praise in a setting where you give the employee an opportunity to gauge your words, you help found a relationship of trust.
Right Tone[/b]
Tone is about how you say or write something, or what you appear to mean by your body language. When giving praise you want to make sure you are giving the praise in a tone that is informed, professional and sincere. If you are face-to-face with the person, factors including your facial expressions, the volume of your voice, the pace of your phrases, and the pitch of your voice contribute to your tone. In writing, (the easiest place to get misunderstood), your choice of vocabulary and the length of your sentences and paragraphs, set the tone for your message.
Being Specific[/b]
Giving praise is more than just giving a compliment. Compliments are great for employee morale, but if you really want to encourage and reinforce a behavior, praise needs to be specific.
Not Overdone[/b]
In cognitive neuroscience the phenomenon is referred to as semantic satiation. Repetition causes a word or phrase to temporarily lose meaning for the listener, who can only process the speech as repeated meaningless sounds.
Not Combined With Criticism[/b]
If there is one simple rule to remember when giving praise, it’s to avoid using the word, “but” immediately after you’ve complimented the person. Many of us are familiar with the ‘sandwich’ model for providing feedback, but it doesn’t work if you truly just want to recognize someone. If you are trying to sugar-coat criticism by masking it with praise, you will fail miserably in both departments. There is a time for corrective feedback. There is a time for praise. Choose your time wisely so people trust that when you say something, you mean it.