“What Do You Celebrate?”
by Chris Reinhardt, feedlot specialist
Part of what makes up a family or a community is their celebrations.
As a critical part in demonstrating and living out the “culture of caring”, we reach out to a friend or colleague who is experiencing loss or pain in their personal life. But another important aspect to showing that we care is by lifting them up in celebration when they are experiencing a victory, in both their work life and their personal life.
Personal victories may include a wedding, the birth of a child, success of children in school or career, an adult child’s wedding, or the birth of a grandchild. The more we express our genuine, shared, joy for our colleagues’ victories outside of the workplace, the more that colleague will feel that the workplace is really just an extension of their non-work relationships.
It is important that exceptional colleagues should be celebrated in the workplace. This can take place through some type of formal recognition, either in private or with great public ceremony, or simply private acknowledgement of accomplishments or milestones. Most organizations have some form of structured recognition for certain accomplishments, such as the 5-year pin, or the employee of the month, both of which have merit. But the creative leader will find more ways to identify less obvious demonstrations of leadership.
At a recent training meeting attended by members of numerous competing companies, a committee selected an exceptional candidate from nominations which had previously and secretly been submitted by each attendee’s supervisor. A maintenance worker from one of the companies was publicly recognized in front of his peers as an exceptional employee and given an engraved and valuable handmade knife. Walking to the front to accept the award, the man was nearly speechless, but uttered, “I’ve never won anything in my life!”
Every person who approaches their job with integrity and commitment wants to feel valuable to the organization. Nothing communicates this value more resoundingly than public recognition of their contribution.