Give Your Undivided Attention To Give The Best Recognition

Have you noticed how some people pretend to give recognition to others but they’re not really paying attention to the person they’re recognizing?

Remember when your mother used to say to you “Don’t talk with your mouthful.” Well, I’m here to tell you today not to give recognition with your hands full. Put down your smartphone or other electronic devices and allow yourself to give your undivided attention so you can give people the best recognition ever.

Think about what you might need to do or become an encourager of others to give recognition with their full and undivided attention.

Paying Attention to People Is Essential

It is so important to pay attention to people when recognizing them. I’ve heard horror stories of managers or leader checking emails and texts during a recognition presentation – even answering a cell phone call.

But no worries – there are lots of ways you can become more focused on your recognition giving. Follow these simple ways to be more attentive to your employees:

1. Become mindful before giving recognition. Clear your mind with some refocusing and deep breathing. Focus on your core purpose for this recognition and honoring the recipient. Keep your agendas for what’s coming afterward away from the person your recognizing.
2. Be prepared is still a good motto to follow. Come fully prepared to recognize the individual knowing their preferred name, the positive behaviors being acknowledged or achievement reached, and neat insights or positive attributes about the person.
3. Think before you speak. Strive to express positive appreciation to the individual in the way that is most meaningful to them. Consider writing a handwritten note that may be a keepsake for them after the presentation.
4. Look them in the eyes. Where culturally appropriate look the person you’re recognizing in the eyes with face-to-face recognition.
5. Control the surroundings by removing distractions. Work on controlling the immediate environment to remove as many auditory and visual distractions as you can.

1. Watch how you come across to others. Make sure to work on all nonverbal forms of expression and body language so that you show them you are fully engaged with the recognition recipient.
2. Make time to be with the person afterward. Whenever time permits linger with the employee so you can add a more personal touch to the event to celebrate with them on their recognition.
3. Always acknowledge the person if you have to leave. If you have to leave for another meeting, or some other reason, make sure to congratulate the employee one more time before saying goodbye.

Some Last Points To Think On

Removing distractions before giving recognition must become something you routinely do every time you plan a recognition encounter.

Here are a few additional items you must do to be efficient in removing distractions when you give recognition to someone.

• When you’re on the phone with someone and expressing recognition to them, make sure you’re not multitasking on an email or another project that would cause you to lose focus of the person you should be valuing.
• Always ask yourself is there any distraction that is getting in the way of my valuing the contributions of this employee?
• What can I do to make sure that no employee would ever feel that something else is more important than them at the time they’re being recognized?

Good luck with teaching and showing others the importance of removing distractions when giving recognition.

Reflective Question: What examples have you seen where personal or environmental distractions ruined a recognition experience?

Roy is no longer writing new content for this site (he has retired!), but you can subscribe to Engage2Excel’s blog as Engage2Excel will be taking Roy’s place writing about similar topics on employee recognition and retention, leadership and strategy.