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Leadership Lesson #8 is to appreciate and empower followers, an underappreciated factor in the leadership equation. Good followers make leadership look easy, and a leader often overlooks how followers contribute to the leader's success. "Everyone wants to feel that they count for something and are important to someone. People will work harder, and work more, for those who care about them, and their trust will earn you respect" (Daskal, 2015, para. 7).
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Showing appreciation can be as simple as saying thank you when someone does something for you, big or little.
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Most of us really do want to be thanked for the things that we do, even if it's something that we're supposed to be doing anyway. Being appreciated is one of those things that really motivates us, both at work and in life, so a little goes a long way if you can offer up a genuine thank you when it's appropriate. (Laura Trice, as cited in Henry, 2014, para. 2)
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Recognition should also be as immediate as possible. Praise becomes less effective as a motivational tool as the time between the action taken and the recognition increases.
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"Successful leaders understand the nature of teams and their role on a team. The effective leader, when working on a team, understands that the leader's goal is for the team to be successful. The effective leader knows that to be successful, each person must relinquish his or her own agenda for personal success and embrace the opportunity to share success with the team."
-Bernadette Melnyk, Kathy Malloch, and Lynn Gallagher-Ford (2017, p. 36)
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In addition, giving praise and recognition may be even more meaningful when done in front of others. The old adage to "praise in public and criticize in private" has merit, because public praise encourages other followers to replicate the behavior that earned the praise. Zak (2017) agrees, suggesting that recognition is most powerful for both the colleague being recognized and others in the organization when it:
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Is based on meeting a stretch goal
Occurs within a week of the goal's being reached
Is personal, public, tangible, and unexpected
Comes from peers
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This can vary, though, among followers, as some people are embarrassed by public recognition. And, it may evoke feelings of jealousy in those who were not recognized for their accomplishments in the past.
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When showing appreciation, being specific is also important (Maroney, 2015). Vague praise sounds insincere. Instead of just saying, "I really am grateful for the good job you do around here," you might say, "I really appreciate how you dealt with the agitated patient last night. Your efforts kept a volatile situation from getting out of control." When you are specific, followers realize that you are truly watching their actions and recognize their unique contributions (Maroney, 2015).
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Biro (2015, para. 2) cautions, however, that we have become ...