When done right, praise primes the brain for higher performance.
As a general rule, the more we praise, the more success we create.
Psychologist and workplace researcher Shawn Achor confirms that the more you can authentically shine praise on everyone in your ecosystem, the better everyone does.
The problem, says Achor, with home, work and other relationships, isn’t that we fail to praise enough; it’s that we praise the wrong way.
If you really want to enhance others, stop using words that end in “er” and “est.” Don’t compare.
There’s an old saying: “Comparison is the thief of joy.”
When we tell someone they are “better” or “best”, we undercut others and place limits on their expectations – and our own.
Comparing implies that just as soon as we are just a little bit better than another person, we can stop trying, even if it means stopping short of our potential.
Achor says we can resist falling into the comparison trap by eliminating words like “the best,” “the smartest,” and “the prettiest.”
Instead, praise effort and work product. Express genuine admiration. Acknowledge insights that you can learn from and use.
Give direct and honest feedback about what your people do well, sans the “est” superlatives.
Raise the bar for performance, by not setting one in the first place.
Have a great week.
Sign up for The Sunday Snippet!
Good ideas to help you prosper delivered fresh each Sunday morning.