The art of saying thank you.. And not saying another word!

Cultivating the art of saying thank you, giving appreciation and recognizing success is a discipline in itself. It’s a commitment that requires an effort for many of us. 

If you tend not to thank people very often and have made the effort to do so, well done. Keep going. 

Now to take it one step further and to engage and motivate those around you when you say Thank you, or give them a positive comment or give them a compliment, MAKE SURE you SAY ANYTHING ELSE afterwards! 

Here's what it might look like otherwise: “Wow! Thank you! That's great what you just did. I'm really impressed. You should be proud! But did you think you could have added this, this and this? It seems to me that it would have been even better.

You would never do that, obviously!... Or would you? 

Observe yourself the next time you give a compliment or say thank you. Even though I know it myself, and pass it on regularly to the managers I work with as a precious insight, I still find myself thanking my daughter like this sometimes:

“Thank you for setting the table, I appreciate it very much. Especially since it comes from your own initiative! Oops ... you forgot to place the forks. And the glasses. But it's no big deal. Good job!"

Classic behavior, you’ll tell me, yes. And add a layer of awkwardness to that and you won’t wonder why so many people around us have become T-fal to compliments. 

Maybe I can wait a bit and let the compliment or positive comment really sink in? BEFORE I add anything? And then I can check if what I feel like adding is truly important. If it actually is, maybe now’s not the right moment, and I can leave it at that so my thank you really sinks in.

Food for thought.

Do you have any examples of situations that you have seen, heard, or created that might help us reflect on the issue? 

Do you have any additional tips to share? 

Looking forward to reading you. 

Here’s to your growth!

Josée