Simple Ways to Show Your Employees That You Appreciate Them

Employees that are respected are more productive. People who feel appreciated are more inclined to go above and beyond for the business. They keep themselves more responsible for their contributions to a mission. Above all, they’re happy with their employment, which means they’re less likely to quit.

Leaders who ignore chances to engage with their staff and express respect to their workers are robbing themselves of a valuable tool for cultivating a loyal, long-term workforce.

Employee Appreciation Day is the first Friday in March each year, so don’t wait until then to show your appreciation for the most valuable commodity. Make employee gratitude a frequent habit rather than an annual affair. Here are nine excellent ways to express your gratitude to your employees:

1. Take little steps that add up to a major change.

Appreciation does not necessitate grand gestures. Send a handwritten note of thanks, an email, or a phone call of encouragement. Even the smallest movements will leave a lasting impression.

2. Open up new possibilities.

Giving your workers as many chances as possible is one of the easiest ways to capture their hearts and minds. Allow them to take on major tasks, such as a high-profile initiative or a new leadership job, or pay for a workshop or meeting.

Make it exclusive and intimate.

Make your gestures of gratitude and praise as precise as possible. Don’t only say “nice work,” but elaborate about what impressed you. “Thank you for having the confidence to speak up in the meeting,” for example. When everybody else was afraid to talk about the issue, it made a huge difference in cracking the ice.”

Demonstrate your confidence in them.

It sends a powerful message to your workers when you can demonstrate your faith in them. In other words, you’re asking them that their job is strong enough that they don’t need you to keep an eye on them.

 Make changes on the inside.
Ensure that the staff has the resources they need to do their jobs, including up-to-date technology, adequate lighting and HVAC, and convenient, ergonomic furniture. Consider incorporating extras like a lunch room or a bar based on recommendations.

Make time to engage with others.

Leaders have a lot of obligations, and it’s possible to get engrossed in your own job and neglect your colleagues. Having the opportunity to engage with your colleagues is one of the easiest ways to show them you care. Find out how they’re coping, and their personal lives.

7. Make mentoring a part of the organization’s ethos.

There are younger workers of virtually every company who can profit from being partnered with an experienced colleague. There’s no better way to transmit useful information and provide newbies a support system right from the outset than to create a structured mentorship program or a more informal buddy system.

Give them a sense of possession.

Giving people the keys to a project that is relevant to their skills and interests is a surefire way to inspire them to do their best. Allow the proposal to be based on the employee’s own thoughts if at all necessary. More workers will be motivated by seeing their colleague’s talent celebrated, not just that the employee will be encouraged to develop and flourish.

9. Be open and frank about yourself.

Honesty should be anticipated, but it is more difficult at times than others. Many people think you shouldn’t discuss negative things, but those conversations–as challenging as they can be–show you care enough to deliver even the most difficult truths. Honest and straightforward reviews will earn you respect and give you the confidence of others.

The bottom line is that if your workers understand how much you trust them, there is nothing they won’t do to support you and your team.

As a leader, perception is a very real problem. They must determine how they expect their workers to see them and behave in accordance with that perception. Leaders usually prefer a mix of stoic, strong, closed-off, and loud-mouthed personalities. Some people also like to be labeled as jerks. Although this is normally a calculated choice made to preserve loyalty and prevent inappropriate circumstances, you’re making a major mistake if you absolutely avoid a personal relationship with your staff.

Employees who are respected and supported by their bosses are much more inclined to go above and beyond for the company and keep themselves responsible for their contribution to a mission. Most significantly, they would be more satisfied with their employment. Leaders who fail to engage with their colleagues risk the value of a loyal, long-term team.

Some people find it tough to communicate with workers while still holding a position of authority; I believe the key is to clearly show them you care. Here are 11 forms for leaders to show their respect for their workers.

1. Go beyond and beyond to assist them directly. It is not enough to merely assist the staff with job problems; a better leader can also look at opportunities to assist them with personal issues. My co-founder was having trouble finding a place to live, and I saw her anger every day.

Rather than tossing money at the issue, I went to the apartment complex where she planned to live and spoke with the manager. She was hired within a week. To this day, I believe she believes I can do everything in my power to help her, which has resulted in a hard-to-break trust that is invaluable in a professional relationship.

2. Relate to them rather than acting as though you are above them. If you’ve ever worked in a world where executives get their own parking spots and make you carry their baggage while they drive, you know what it’s like to believe your boss doesn’t care about you.

When I see an employee is having a challenge, I reflect on my own experiences and share with him how I overcame or did not solve the situation. Employees often position you on a pedestal as a boss, but keeping yourself on their floor by revealing your own vulnerability and flaws helps them resolve their obstacles.

3. Demonstrate that you are interested in their personal life. Although you should avoid commenting about your employee’s new boyfriend/girlfriend or organizing an all-night drinking spree,

It is entirely possible to demonstrate concern about the employee’s personal life without being weird. When one of our workers had to cancel her honeymoon, we set up a mini-beach retreat at the office as a replacement. The trick is to demonstrate to your team that they are more than mere worker bees.

4. Show affection for their significant ones. Companies who do not authorize significant others at work activities, such as Christmas celebrations, have always perplexed me. Why wouldn’t you want to have your employee’s most ardent supporter?

Work is much easier to do when you have help at home, so I want my employee’s partner to know how much I love him or her.

5. Provide them with clients to back them up. In our workplace, we have a “no-a**hole” client agreement. When an employee complains of a customer mistreating her, we investigate the case and, if possible, terminate the client. It makes no difference how much a customer pays you if you have skilled people who believe you have their back. You would be compensated with a better return than the biggest client will ever give you.

Do things that would set you apart from the crowd. Being inventive about employee benefits can help you go a long way. It doesn’t have to be expensive; it just needs to demonstrate that you’ve considered making your workers’ personal or professional lives a little easier. To keep the imaginative juices going, here is a list of exclusive benefits that other businesses have given to their staff.

Be honest and open with them. If an employee requests input, be truthful — don’t lie to him. That doesn’t mean you can be cruel, but keeping workers from knowing the facts can only harm them — and the business. Transparency is normally followed by a few awkward conversations, but such difficult conversations demonstrate that you care enough to deliver the hard facts, which means a lot to staff. As an added bonus, honest and transparent reviews can provide improved outcomes.

Set aside time for them. Employees find it difficult to feel respected because their boss is too distracted for a quick conversation. It’s possible to get engrossed in day-to-day tasks and become too distracted with those around you, so by keeping yourself responsible for daily meetings with your team mates, staff can feel noticed and appreciated.

The smallest details do matter. A short email to your team after a win or a note of motivation after a major sale can go a long way, particularly if you’re working on a tight deadline. During Thanksgiving or Christmas, I try to send an email expressing my gratitude to each member of my team. It doesn’t have to be a “Jerry Maguire”-style email; simply type a few sentences explaining why you like them. Consider it a red flag if you can’t think about something you like about each employee.

Be mindful of the goals you have for yourself. You can do all of the above and yet waste your time if you don’t have realistic goals. Entrepreneurs have a tendency to be too nervous and overpromise outcomes to workers, which may lead to problems. When a leader sets goals that are too high to realistically achieve, team cohesion suffers, even though she has nailed the actions mentioned above.

Before your workers can trust in, or care for, the company’s long-term mission, culture, or performance, they must accept that you see each of them as an individual, not merely a “employee” to carry out your to-do list. They need to believe that their representative — and the business — cares for them. When you show the team how much you appreciate them, there is nothing they can not aspire to do.