Celebrating Wins

By Scott Jackson, Vice President, Marketing Communications Operations 

Last month, in his post titled "We is Greater Than Me", Frank Belzer encouraged us to collaborate like performers in a play and constantly look for ways to raise the bar and bring out the best in one another.  Frank reminded us that actors do not rate their success by the size of their part, but by the size of the ovation at the end of the night.  

Now, instead of being on stage, imagine yourself in the audience of a great play.  Say you splurged and purchased tickets to see Hamilton.  What if you and all of the other theater-goers sat on their hands during the show and did not appreciate the "revolutionary" performance with a single clap or any sign of approval?  The entire experience would not be the same for the actors or the audience.  

Are we guilty of this at work?  

When we see greatness at work, we need to congratulate and recognize those that performed well, whether it is a single Team Member or and entire group. When we celebrate wins, there are real benefits to us as individuals and as an organization.

Celebrating can be as big as a formal ceremony or simply praising a colleague in public.  It can be an epic lip-sync battle or “nice job” in the hallway.

According to author and "Organizational Anthropologist" Judith Glaser, (Celebration Time, 2015 Psychology Today), celebrations elevate the level of “feel good” chemicals produced in the central nervous system. Their release into our system gives us a sense of well-being, creating a safe space that enables us to experiment, take risks, learn and handle the challenges of growing the business.

When we receive public praise and support, we unlock this powerful set of neurochemical patterns that cascade positive chemistry throughout the brain. Highly motivated employees describe the feeling of performing well as a euphoric state.

When this state of positive exaltation comes with appropriate, honest, and well-deserved (sincere) praise, employees feel they are trusted and supported by their boss. They will take more risks, speak up more, push back when they have things to say, and be more confident in their dealings with their peers.

By celebrating one another, we are doing a good thing as humans to spark positive emotions.  We create an environment were team members are more willing to take intelligent risks for the business.

How you make others feel about themselves at work says a lot about you.  Practice celebrating others with this easy 2-step process:  

Challenge yourself to actively observe praiseworthy behavior in others and keep a journal. Write down who did it and why it was great.

Take the time to publicly compliment them on your observations. When you recognize and celebrate what is excellent in others, you make their excellence belong to you as well.  

Mark Twain once said "I can live for two months on a good compliment".  Let’s all make sure we do not have to survive that long between celebrations.

Scott Jackson is the Vice President of Marketing Communications Operations.  He believes that creativity is an attitude best cultivated by team camaraderie, shared thinking and innovative play.