We are all familiar with the leadership skills needed for engaging our employees, the principles of motivation, and the power of great leaders.
Additionally, I think people are in agreement that great rewarding performance is crucial to achieving excellence and sustaining organizational success.
However, there are some misconceptions about celebration – celebration myths, if you will – that must be overcome in order to ignite people properly.
To fully utilize motivational rewards for employees, you must cast off the “old school” way of thinking that still adheres to concepts such as the following:
Celebrating Victories Encourages People to Slack Off
Some people believe that when employees are recognized for how well they’re doing, they get too comfortable in their positions, overestimate their value, and take it as a cue to start doing less.
Great leaders, on the other hand, know that rewards are excellent tools for encouraging continued achievements. It’s human nature to crave recognition and letting someone know that what they’re doing is making a difference can really boost their desire to do even more.
Celebrations Cost Too Much Time and Effort
It is true that if you use a company get-together as a vehicle to recognize and reward exceptional behavior, then you might be losing some time that could otherwise be spent on production.
However, in the long run, those who work with you will remember that you thought enough of what they’ve done to take time out of the workday and devote it to honoring them.
And that sort of special recognition will not be forgotten. In fact, it will be rewarded with increased effort and dedication.
Celebration Does Not Make a Difference in Results
Some managers tend not to invest in their employees. They do not recognize the powerful effect that the celebration of great achievements can have on the workplace culture.
They see rewards only as superficial actions and tokens that they have to hand out because they have been told to do so.
Great leaders encourage celebration and the value it brings to the team or company. Instead of seeing the process as a chore that must be done, leaders celebrate achievements right along with their team members, knowing that rewards increase self-worth in the workplace. Thus increasing productivity.
Employees Should Not Need Extra Rewards
This is true. We expect team members to work to their full potential because they believe in their work, their team, and their organization, not because they think that they will be given a party or a gift card for doing well.
But that doesn’t mean that people don’t need to celebrate from time to time. Celebration of achievements in a workplace that is already running efficiently can be presented as an added bonus, something to be gained when the work is truly exceptional. Thus it is encouraging not just good work but work that goes above and beyond the standard requirements.
This overachievement is an expectation and a natural product of a highly effective organizational culture.
Celebration Ruins Employees’ Focus
For an “old school” manager in a reactive environment, there is always the fear that any celebration, even if it’s just taking a few minutes to acknowledge good performance, will interrupt the flow of production and throw everything off track.
This reservation comes from a lack of belief in one’s team members. If you really know who you’re working with, you will know that they are accountable and trustworthy enough to be able to take a break, enjoy the celebration, and then go right back to what they’d been doing. This is the sort of dedication that great leaders inspire in their teams.
Celebrating makes your organization a fun and inspiring place to get things done. When we are in our “glad” state of mind, we are the most productive. What do you do to have more fun at work and inspire productivity? Comment below on what you do to celebrate achievement.
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How Do You Celebrate?
If you have ideas that you feel like sharing that might be helpful to readers, share them in the comments section below. Thanks!
Would you like to contribute a post?
Inspiration & celebration are essential progress tools.Invovement & dedication in work is through internalization & accomplishment with celebrations for achievements with suitable recognition including the rewards.
The motivation for all employees the non rewardees too is through celebrations.
Best Wishes for rewards & Celebrations.
M.S.Kannan.