I came across my seniors and fellow colleagues complimenting me at work. The compliments have ranged from my dressing style to the way I conducted calls with clients and convinced them on the reasons behind delays to even the Minutes of Meeting emails. Overall, I have been blessed with a healthy work culture till date.
This blog is for all those who like to compliment others and also love receiving compliments from others. I have noticed people getting awkward, not knowing on how to graciously accept the compliments. This blog is dedicated to all those who believe in communicating their feelings with hope to get along smoothly at work. On January 24, we celebrate National Compliment Day.
When you work as a Manager, you have a team to lead and all goes well if the bonding is strong among them. The first step after introduction is usually to praise each other to keep the spirits high. Different people respond to compliments in different ways. Naturally, if you are new to receiving praise, you might dilute it by saying things which might hurt the sentiments of the compliment giver.
Avoid saying phrases like – Oh! Really. It has been like this for years or I don’t think it was that great. You should never turn down the praise because that only shows your low esteem. In a team, it is important to thank your teammates for their valuable efforts resulting in successful project delivery. One of my Reporting Managers used to thank the team on mail mentioning how their never-ending efforts and constant hard work resulted in successful completion of the work.
Tips to praise your teammates
- Give due credits to the deserving teammates – Either on a mail shared with the team or a casual announcement for all teammates verbally can make a huge difference in your teammates’ life. I remember, my boss once asked everyone to pay attention and told how we were chasing one of our first international clients and responding to each of their queries in real time. It came as a surprise when he mentioned my name and told the team how I quietly was carrying on with this project along with my other projects. This moment will always hold a special place in my mind.
- Pinpointing the good work – I had a colleague whose sole reason to move on with other opportunities was his reporting manager’s micromanaging behaviour. He used to show me his inbox and WhatsApp messages where the reporting manager would point out the areas which needed improvement ending up with him reworking on one document at least five times. I used to ask him how he deals with all of this and he told me, he could relate with this behaviour as he has worked in startups before where uncertainty was the leading factor and demands attention. He was complemented well on his last day as even the reporting manager had a realization that all went smoothly because of this teammate not escalating his panicky behaviour.
- Highlight the improved areas – You can always push your teammates for their best outputs but it is always good to leave them with a positive review once you see they have improved upon the areas highlighted by you. A positive note saying that you have noticed a tremendous improvement in the specified areas not only relax them but also assured them with confidence to lead a project all by themselves.
Folks if your bosses are bad then don’t worry because it is rightly said, “Good boss makes you better but bad boss makes you the best”. I have instilled my belief in this saying and have given my best at work.
