Firefly News Flash, February 2014, The Firefly Group

Your ETR (Estimated Time to Read): 10 minutes
Your ETII (Estimated Time to Implement Ideas): 5 weeks

Read my book
Say It Quick!

February 2014

Say It Quick a thoughtful message in exactly 99 words	Discoveries bits of serendipity to inspire and motivate	Ideas fuel for your own continuous learning	Activities tips and tricks you can try today
Get the Feeling	A Culture of Appreciation in Your Organization	Appreciation Scarcity	Snowball Effect

Say It Quick

Get the Feeling
"There's no snow," moaned my daughter. "It doesn't feel like Christmas!" With balmy temperatures and a week of rain, even the holiday lights looked mud-streaked and dingy. It did not feel like Christmas. My friend Dave said, "I loved the magical feeling of Christmas as a kid. But that feeling has passed. Now I realize that Christmas felt magical because of what other people were doing."

When we don't feel "in the mood" we become disappointed, discouraged. We forget that situations change only when we act.

If we start acting like "Christmas" the feeling will come.

Discoveries

Connect: Create a Culture of Appreciation in your Organisation
How often do people thank each other for their contributions in your organization? To what extent does your organization have a culture of appreciation?

If you can't answer these questions, or if you think they aren't important to your bottom line, consider these statistics:

"Recent U.S. Department of Labor data shows that the number one reason people leave their job is that they do not feel appreciated. According to a Gallup poll, 65 percent of workers say they didn't receive a single word of praise or recognition in the past year." -- Noelle C. Nelson, author of The Power of Appreciation in Business

"A decade of research shows happiness is seriously good for business. Happiness raises nearly every key business indicator: 33% higher profitability (Gallup), 43% more productivity (Hay Group), 37% higher sales (Shawn Achor), 300% more innovation (Harvard Business Review)." -- Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappos

These facts are taken from Connect: Create a Culture of Appreciation in your Organisation, a 42-page booklet with 52 activities to infuse your organization - or yourself - with an appreciative spirit. Each activity is brief, inventive, fun, and flexible enough to inspire the creation of your own acts of thankfulness.

Connect is the brainchild of Stephanie Pollack, M.A. who is an Instructor in Communication of the University at Buffalo State, University of New York at the Singapore Institute of Management. Working with a team of students, Pollock has assembled activities that demonstrate appreciation in four categories:

Acknowledge - Perform unexpected acts of appreciation to brighten a colleague's day
Award - Present your colleagues with an award that recognize their contributions
Accredit - Cast a wider net to increase intra- and inter-departmental engagement
Applaud - End-of-meeting activities providing an opportunity for appreciations to go around the table
Aware - Acts of appreciation stem from the individual, so please remember to appreciate the most important one - yourself!

Connect is a quick start for building appreciation with solid suggestions to make being thankful a positive habit in your organization. It's available on-line and it's free.

Connect: Create a Culture of Appreciation in Your Organisation. http://connect.creativefacilitations.com/, Stephanie Pollack, M.A., Stephanie'at'CreativeFacilitations.com

Ideas

Appreciation Scarcity
Perhaps you experience a regular sense of appreciation for your work or your contributions around the house and in your community. Perhaps you are known for your consistent thanks and the ease with which you offer positive, helpful feedback. But, perhaps not. If the statistics cited above are correct, most of us don't feel appreciated as often as we'd like. And that means most of us also are not expressing our appreciation as often as we should.

Why?

I have some ideas.

Biology - Scientists who study the brain confirm that we are hardwired to look for danger. This, they say, is adaptive. It keeps us out of trouble. We are also wired for social harmony, especially with people who are most like ourselves. Expressing appreciation to them strengthens relationships while we are naturally averse to showing the people less like ourselves that we appreciate them.
Pride - It takes a humble person to admit they have been assisted by someone else. If I demonstrate that I can juggle appointments, projects, and people all by myself, I must be a pretty incredible person. Concede that I had a little help? Forget it!
Status - It's also difficult to give kudos to people lower on the organizational chart, especially if they are paid less. If someone who deserves appreciation is lower in status, why should I risk my standing by acknowledging their contribution? (See Biology and Pride)
Media - Pop culture, and television in particular, seems to thrive on controversy. Sharing differing opinions is typically a good thing but creating rivalries that force all of us to choose sides is deadening. The constant tension distracts from the common ground we share which is a source of mutual appreciation.
Productivity - We work to make or accomplish something. But sometimes we become so focused on measuring productivity that we ignore the people who did the work, the ingenuity it took to complete it, and the hurdles that had to be overcome in the process. People are just as important as the numbers.
Abundance - Studies show that wealthy people donate a smaller proportion of their income to charity than people who have a low income. When we have more than we need, we tend to become protective, worried that we might lose what we've earned. As a result, we spend our energy accumulating even more wealth and less time enjoying what we already have - and appreciating those who helped us get it!

So how can we counteract these barriers that keep us from appreciating others? One solution is suggested by the 99-Word Story. With so many hindrances to appreciation, it's no use waiting to "get the feeling." Start acting like you appreciate others now. After a few instances, your efforts will snowball until you really do feel like "Christmas."

Activities

Snowball Effect
Here is an activity I created after being inspired by Connect. Use it to accomplish three things: 1) Escalate positive feelings about your organization; 2) Practice expressing appreciation; and 3) Have fun. Appreciation is contagious so to become more thankful, begin acting thankfully.

Time: 10 to 15 minutes
Number of people: six or more
Materials: Papers and pens or pencils

Procedure: Distribute at least two papers and a writing instrument to each person. Ask people to rate their level of appreciation or happiness with your organization on a scale of 1 to 5 with five being extremely satisfied. Write it on a paper and keep it secret.

On a separate sheet, ask people to write something they genuinely appreciate about your organization. What makes them feel good about being a member of this organization? Ask them to write clearly so that others else can read it. Have them wad their paper into a ball. On the count of three, everyone toss their ball into the air to create a snowstorm.

Ask people to pick up a snowball, open it, and read it to themselves. Have people silently walk around the room with their paper showing it to others while reading the papers that others have.

After a few moments, invite several people to read their papers aloud for the whole group. They can read what they have, restate something they read on a different paper, or make up something new on the spot.

Discussion:

What were some appreciations that surprised you?

What themes emerged among the appreciations?

What would be the effect if someone had written an appreciation that was not genuine for them?

If you were to re-write your original appreciation, how would you alter it? (Re-write it now!)

Next, ask people to think again about their level of happiness or appreciation with your organization overall. Have them rate their happiness level (1-5) for a second time and mark it on their secret paper as before. Ask people to take a moment of personal, private reflection. Has their rating gone up, down, or stayed the same?

Discussion:

You don't need to share whether your personal rating changed but, hypothetically, why might someone's rating have gone up after this activity? Why might it have gone down or stayed the same?

What suggestions would you make to increase a person's level of appreciation?

How might we improve everyone's level of appreciation for and within our organization?

Who has responsibility for either establishing or maintaining a culture of appreciation?

How might the effect of these statements of appreciation have been different if they had been about specific individuals as opposed to the whole organization?

Ask people to take another moment of personal, private reflection and consider: To what degree has your own level of happiness increased or your mood become more positive? If it has improved, how do you explain that? If it hasn't improved, what might you do going forward?

If you give this activity a try with your team, please !

If you like what you have read in this issue, I would like to bring the same innovation, creativity, and playfulness to your next meeting or learning event.

Whether you need a keynote speaker, or help with strategic planning, performance improvement, or training facilitators and trainers in your organization, I look forward to your call (802.257.7247) or .

-- Brian

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