Practice Uncommon Appreciation.

Quoting from the chapter of the same title in Jack Canfield and Janet Switzer’s book The Success Principles, there is much to be said for taking note of and finding opportunities to practice appreciation.

‘“There is more hunger for love and appreciation in this world than for bread.” Mother Teresa, Winner of the Nobel Peace Prize.

“I have yet to find a man, however exalted his station, who did not do better work and put forth greater effort under a spirit of approval than under a spirit of criticism. Charles Schwab, Founder of Charles Schwab and Co., a financial services empire.

A recent management survey revealed that 46% of employees leaving a company do so because they feel unappreciated; 61% said their bosses don’t place much importance on them as people, and 88% said they do not receive acknowledgement for the work they do.

I have never known anyone to complain about receiving too much positive feedback. Have you? In fact the opposite is true. Whether you are an entrepreneur, manager, teacher, parent, or simply a friend, if you want to be successful with other people, you must master the art of appreciation.

Consider this: every year a management consulting firm conducts a survey with 200 companies on the subject of what motivates employees. When given a list of 10 possible things that would most motivate them, the employees always list appreciation as the number one motivator.

When asked to rank order that same list managers and supervisors ranked appreciation number eight. This is a major mismatch.’

I have noticed a similar thing with customer relations; most managers and business owners will try to tell you that price and service are the key motivators in their customer’s behaviour. Yes, it is true that these play a major role, but it is how they are treated and the degree to which they feel appreciated that determines their opinion of your business, how often and how strongly they will refer you, and their loyalty, often to the point of whether they will be back or not.

Customers, I believe rank appreciation – how you treat them and make them feel, above price and service, so it stands to reason that if you want your business to thrive, you must master the art of appreciation.