Drew has a special rapport with his team. He isn’t big on commercialized events, like Employee Appreciation Day, but he makes sure he says thank you several times a day, to each and every person on the bus. For Drew, showing approval is like money in the bank—he can see the effect it has on everyone, the way it makes their eyes shine and their faces light up. Lately, since his team is working harder than ever and has made so many significant gains, Drew is looking for more and more creative ways to show gratitude, and to personalize his gestures. Homemade macadamia nut snickerdoodle cookies are the perfect way to thank Rufus for a job well done, while Joan absolutely melts when he writes her a poem to express his appreciation. Everyone is different. Appreciation is important.
My grandmother always said, “He who doesn’t thank for a little won’t thank for a lot.” Her point was that if you don’t show appreciation for the little things people do for you, those people are unlikely to make a larger effort on your behalf. Showing appreciation is one of the ways you can uplift your staff, which helps to keep everyone performing at a high level.
At RCA, we will occasionally provide lunch or breakfast for the staff. Sometimes we organize surprises or allow staff to leave early for the day. One day the team showed up for professional development, but when they arrived at the meeting room Kim Bearden (the cofounder of RCA) and I were not there. We had left in our stead a simple red envelope that said Open Me. Inside was a word puzzle the team had to solve. Once they did so, the answer led them somewhere else inside our school where another clue was hidden. This went on and on for about an hour, and by that time the team was working together, cheering each other on, and having a blast solving the clues. The final note listed an address with the words, “Come find us.” The address led them to Macy’s department store, and Kim and I were out front, ready and waiting. When the team approached us, we gave a speech about how deeply appreciative we were for all their hard work and efforts, and then we announced that each person was receiving a shopping trip to Macy’s to buy professional clothing. “LET’S GO SHOPPING!” It was an electric moment, and since we ask our staff to dress in business attire every single day, this was a way to show appreciation through a fun outing, as well as to support their efforts to dress for success.
The entire staff jumped and cried and hugged us. They were so appreciative, and it was beautiful.
He who doesn’t thank for a little won’t thank for a lot.
But then, a few of the staff made a couple of comments that struck me the wrong way—they seemed appreciative, yet they seemed hard to please. One person asked why we had limited the shopping spree to Macy’s. Another was so excited that she had tears in her eyes, but then she asked if it was okay to shop for casual clothing as well. Now, the whole point of the experience was so that everyone could have new, fresh attire to wear at RCA, where we have to be in suit and tie every day. I explained it was only for business clothes, and the team member said she completely understood. But, again, it didn’t sit well with me. One staff member said she’d rather come back on another day to shop instead of looking at the same time as everyone else; but the point was for us all to shop together and have an electric shopping spree to bond the team. It turned out to be frustrating. When I was planning our staff appreciation activities for the next year, I scratched through the shopping spree idea. I just didn’t want to do it again, because those little moments stuck with me and kept me from wanting to create that particular experience again for anyone else. I think it’s essential to keep in mind that when someone does something for you, you should make sure to show appreciation quickly and deeply. If not, not only will you be keeping yourself from receiving that type of treatment again but you could also be denying it for others as well.
When you do show appreciation, however, the rewards can be great. I had a teacher from a school who visited RCA email me to tell me that her principal put donut holes in their boxes as a treat. She said she went up to her principal, looked her in the eyes, and let her know that the little treat meant a lot to her. Then she added, “And the next week, we got muffins!”
Everyone on the team needs to understand that how they respond and show appreciation will dictate whether or not those types of experiences will happen for them again. Some employees will complain and complain about how they don’t get raises, bonuses, or other perks, but if they look back to moments in the past, they can often correlate their reactions to the future outcomes.
I’ll always remember one of our staff members, Gina Coss, at the shopping spree. She kept coming up to me and saying, “Ron? A thousand dollars? It’s too much, it’s just too much.” She was so grateful. She asked if she could use some of her money to help get clothes for RCA students who were in need. I told her that it was just for her. She asked if she could share some of her money with other staff members, and again, I explained that it was a special treat for her. She was so happy and overwhelmed by the kindness. When an entire staff handles themselves in the professional and humble manner of Gina Coss, the depths to which a leader will try to do more and more and more for them can rarely be reached.