You already know that it is important to praise other people as a part of your management style. But did you know that there are many people who are suspicious of admiration from managers?
I interviewed a group of workers from a local authority council. I asked them if approval always acts as a motivator. They said: “It depends…” I asked “Upon what?” Here is what they told me:
It depends on who it is
Praise from somebody who knows nothing about the issues does not count for much. The praise is better if it comes from an informed individual.
It depends on if you value the persons judgement
The applause is more highly rated if it comes from a person that the one receiving the admiration respects. Praise from one who does not command respect as a manager does not inspire any positive motivation.
It depends on if you think they mean it
Approval has to be genuine. If the person gets the feeling that the praise in insincere, then it can be counterproductive.
It depends on if they are doing it to butter me up ready to ask me to do something
Some people have the habit of praising people just before they dump a rotten job on them, as a way of softening the blow. After a while this pattern is noticed and the person says “Oh no! What is the bad news?”
It depends on whether it is specific or vague
General admiration is not as good as specific praise. “You are wonderful” is not as good as “Your art work for that last issue front page was wonderful”. “You look fab” is not as good as “Your new hair style really suits you”
It might just be a habit pattern of speech. “Yes, that’s great!”
Most people have speech habits. Some people use affirmative comments as a meaningless speech habit, which has no value as a motivator Great! Smashing! Super! They do not inspire motivation.
Learn these points if you want your praise to be seen as more than empty.
What does this mean to you as a manager or motivator? From these comments we can devise “The five rules for effective praise”
- Become the type of person whose applause is likely to be valued.
- Give specific praise, not general.
- Make your praise sincere. Don’t fake it.
- Separate praise from reprimands
- Separate praise from delegation
Christopher Farmer is an expert in Leadership and Management. His Management Training courses through the Corporate Coach Group have helped hundreds of managers become immediately more effective.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Christopher_Farmer
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