You Can Give Spellbinding Recognition Every Day

It’s hard to believe that the first Harry Potter fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling came out in June 1997. I remember reading the first book to my youngest son while he lay in a hospital bed.

And if you missed reading all seven books in the Harry Potter series, you might have viewed the movies when they came out in theatres starting in 2001.

This was when we all started hearing about the spells Harry Potter and his various housemates and opponents used on people and surrounding objects. 

But you can also give spellbinding recognition the same way as magical spells. Read the following with extra care. 

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Why a Recognition Mission Statement Is So Important

What happens when your organization doesn’t even have a purpose for recognition? Why should you have a written mission statement for recognition?

That’s the dilemma one of your fellow subscribers submitted. For them, their biggest struggle is not having a formal company mission regarding recognition.

Too often, the focus for many organizations with recognition is limited to recognition programs. Recognition programs should be viewed as simply a tool to help people practice the more important, day-to-day practice of recognition giving.

That’s why your purpose for recognition should always include recognition practices as well as your recognition programs.

How can you create a recognition mission statement? (more…)

4 Ways To Be Crystal Clear About The Recognition You Give

Be careful when expressing recognition not to be too brief.

Statements like “Well done!”, “Great job!”, or “Excellent!”, when left in isolation, may not be enough to create the intended message or feeling of appreciation for a person.

The irony is, while we may think we were perfectly clear by giving such succinct words of praise to a person, recipients may think they can see right through them.

They already know what they did was well done and a great job. That’s exactly what they do every day when they come to work. It’s part of the employer-employee agreement they signed up for when hired – do good work and you’ll get paid the agreed upon wage or salary. They are good people who are honest and care about what they do.

Sometimes we sacrifice clarity in the recognition experience we give to people by being short and sweet.

My recommendation is to look through the glass of recognition carefully and make it much clearer. (more…)

5 Ways to Maximize the Power of Symbols With Recognition

Symbols are powerful tools that have been used as a form of human language since the beginning of time.

Today, symbols in the workplace are best represented in brand and culture.

You can apply symbols to employee recognition practices and programs as well and draw upon their amazing emotional power.

Consider these 5 ways to maximize the power of your company symbols of recognition. (more…)

“If I Only Had a Brain”

As Dorothy replied to Scarecrow in the classic “Wizard of Oz” movie, With the thoughts you’d be thinkin’, You could be another Lincoln, If you only had a brain.”

Many of us feel like we are on the yellow brick road wanting to get a brain from the Wizard. We may get locked into thinking “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks”. Well, it seems that old adage is not as scientifically true as we might believe it to be. (more…)