In some workplaces, individual rewards and compliments are as rare as water skis on a camel.
Ask around a bit and you’ll often hear something like this: “If I reward one person, I’ve got nine others who get mad because they’re left out.”
So nobody gets singled out for public praise–and everybody gets to feel unappreciated.
If your workplace has a problem with co-workers griping when a colleague is rewarded, it can be a sign that everyone is hungry for recognition.
Small, individual, daily acts of recognition can dramatically change a work site’s morale–and the rewards are just as effective when they come from peers as from managers.
Individual thank-you notes, singling individuals out for praise in meetings, symbolic trophies or plaques for work areas, and even pass-around awards that can be given to someone else on the spot are all more effective than waiting for an annual raise or a monthly contest to show appreciation.