It feels really great when other people appreciate our presence in their lives. It makes us know that we matter and that the effort we put in makes the world a better place. When someone does something that we are truly thankful for, we need to express our gratitude. We shouldn’t take their good actions and intentions for granted.
As a boss, you need to acknowledge the fact that your business wouldn’t be what it is without the help of your employees, clients, colleagues, friends, and family. There is so much that these people do for you that you ought to be grateful for.
How do you go about communicating your appreciation?
First, you need to come up with a list of people that you are sincerely grateful towards. After that, you need to come up with a creative way of genuinely communicating your appreciation. Doing this is a great way to strengthen relationships, and will make these people feel phenomenal. They will be happy you noticed their efforts and work even harder next time.
The easiest and most friendly way of letting your clients, colleagues, and employees know that you’re thinking about them is by sending gift cards. The best thing about gift cards is that they can be customized to fit different holidays. Throw in a couple of treats such as gourmet chocolates or some home-baked cookies in the gifts basket. You could also send out a mug, a piece of art, a book, or a donation. Make sure to sign each card and include a short personal note on the cards; always be strategic when giving gifts.
Why is practicing gratitude great for your business?
There enormous benefits for bosses and business owners who incorporate the culture of gratitude into their business operations. Studies have shown that gratitude promotes productivity and enables you to achieve business success. Here are eight reasons why gratitude is good for your business:
1. Improves productivity
Gratitude improves the productivity of the people that your business relies on. The more we are thankful for what we have accomplished, the more motivated we are and the better our level of concentration gets. Being grateful has been shown to increase focus, determination, and performance.
Generally speaking, people to whom gratitude is shown are able to produce more than those who aren’t shown any gratitude.
2. Overall health and well-being
Gratitude makes people happier and, therefore, healthier. They can sleep better, have lower blood pressure, and a stronger immune system. A healthier employee or colleague gets more done compared to if they were not in their right state of body and mind.
You would expect better professional performance to come from a happy individual. This is because they are energized and better equipped to face the numerous challenges that work brings their way.
If the employee feels that they are loved and appreciated at their place of work, they will happy, more relaxed and calm.
3. Makes you a better leader
Gratitude helps you maintain your team’s morale so that they remain motivated and give the desired results. A good leader should always be grateful; focusing mainly on the team member’s good traits and avoid complaining at all costs. When all you do is tell them what their weaknesses are, they will be greatly de-motivated. This hinders their performance and ultimately affects the organization as a whole.
A great leader should ensure that his/her team leaders know that their efforts are noticed and appreciated.
4. Builds positive relationships
Grateful people are usually very successful when it comes to initiating and building positive relationships that are essential for a business to thrive. A boss who practices gratitude can easily connect with clients, attract new customers, and foster beneficial relations with employees.
Cultivating positive relationships with the people around you increases retention rates. When your clients, colleagues, and employees feel valued, they stick around for long.
5. Helps you sell better
As an entrepreneur who has an attitude of gratitude, you become a better salesperson. You will notice that the numbers will, almost always, go up. Once you are able to connect better you’re your clients, you will become more persuasive and this will make them more willing to buy from you.
Also, it is highly likely that the clients will come back to do more business with you when you put in a sincere effort to show them that you appreciate them. It, therefore, makes it mandatory for businesses to form deep bonds with their customers.
6. Inspires others
A good leader who practices gratitude will act as an example to those he leads. They will be encouraged to follow suit and display the same thankful attitude as him.
As a leader, it is your job to inspire and cultivate good traits in your employees and clients. Inspire gratitude, honesty, loyalty, productivity, and positivity. Such traits are contagious and they will catch on. Imagine how unstoppable your whole team would be if they were all grateful and productive.
7. Keeps you sane
Bosses usually have so much on their plate. They may be under so much pressure to perform that they end up stressed, frustrated, and discouraged. In such crazy moments, you will find sanity in focusing on the progress you have made. It really helps to be grateful for the things that you have accomplished instead of just focusing on the challenges.
Knowing that what you have accomplished is still a lot compared to other people will make it easier for you while you go through the entrepreneurial emotional roller coaster.
Be thankful for the people who always have your back- those that you can always count on no matter what. This plays a huge role in increasing your mental resilience and helps you pull through the tough times.
8. Puts everything into perspective
When you are running a business, it’s really important that you be grateful for what you have and for what you have accomplished. Doing this is will help you remain levelheaded when things don’t go as you had planned. Take every challenge as an opportunity to learn and be better.
Conclusion
For anyone who wants to run a successful business, he/she has to cultivate a culture of gratitude. Being intentional about being grateful is not as easy as you might think but the rewards are no-doubt enormous.
Any form of negativity at the workplace not conducive for productivity. Instead, it’ll only lead to failure and cause insurmountable problems for your business.
Lastly, do not ever feel as though your acts of gratitude are going to waste. It might just what your friend, neighbor, employee, and colleague needs to keep going.
