Who doesn’t love a small, hand-addressed note in the mail. In an era of quickly produced emails and a mailbox full of “junk” mail, that small white or ecru envelope is a most welcome surprise. Even more of a welcome surprise: a hand-written, thoughtful note of appreciation from…your boss. From personal experience, I can attest to power of these notes.

They are in fact a physical artifact of appreciation. During my corporate days, I kept a basket in my office and each time I received a note of appreciation, I added it to the basket. Not only did they serve as a reminder to me, if and when I needed it, I also used them at the end of the year to recap how my behaviors contributed to the mission, values, and organizational goals as part of my annual review. I still have several of these notes floating around somewhere.
For leaders adopting strategies 9 (rounding) and 10 (one-to-ones), these are ideal methods for collecting the information that is needed to send personal notes of thanks and appreciation. Reinforced behaviors is also the best way to encourage repeated behaviors that are aligned with the organizations goals. Sending thank you notes is an ideal way to reinforce those behaviors. For those who are not receiving thank you notes, it might spark some conversation about why and a meaningful path forward in terms of moving towards more desired behavior.
There is a minor cost associated with the purchase of thank you notes, the result however is a huge impact related to increased engagement and the promotion of organizationally aligned actions.
Coming soon! Engaging your employees:
12 heart-centered strategies to drive your organization’s culture and commitment.
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