Workers love these 8 magic comments

Everyone wants to feel they are valued, to see themselves in a positive light. This is a fundamental human motivation proven by research. In this way, people are prepared to contribute more if they feel they are achieving something worthwhile. Workers love these 8 magic comments, which show they are supported in their work.

Workers love these 8 magic phrases

The following phrases are music to our ears! You don’t have to be a manager or supervisor to say them; you can show leadership as a fellow worker. (Some people say employers exploit this type of motivation to extract more from their workers for no extra cost. If the employer is doing this, it is extremely unethical and will rebound on the employer sooner or later.)

Make a note of these comments and use them when you feel it is appropriate:

“I believe in you.”

This confirmation of faith in a person is tremendously motivating. It shows trust and support for that person.

“What do you think?”

The fact that you respect another person sufficiently to ask their opinion is important to them. For example: an employee in a focus group I once ran in a large organization said, “This is the first time in my 20 years with the company that management have asked my opinion.” He was quite emotional about it.

“That was my fault.”

Your team already knows when you have made a mistake, so there is no point in covering up. If you own up to your mistakes they will respect your openness with them.

“Glad to have you on the team!”

This is one of the most powerful and motivating things you can say to an employee or colleague.

“Here’s where our company is going and these are our goals.”

Employees want to know the direction of the company and the way in which they will understand how they are progressing.

“Thank you.”

Obviously people feel better when you thank them for their efforts. To be even more effective, you should tell them specifically why the acknowledgment is being made. This shows them you are aware of how their specific effort has helped. For instance, say “Thanks for staying back late to finish that report yesterday. Senior management were impressed to receive it so quickly.”

“This is why.”

If you always give a reason, others will invariably respond more positively. Research has found that people can be up to 50% more cooperative if you tell them why: “I would like you to help with this because…” or “This policy has been changed because…”

“I know I can always count on you for…”

The important thing is to be specific. People want to be recognized for their strengths and talents. Specific recognition of these abilities in a conversation is a strong motivator for others.

Several of these points amount to employee recognition, praise, acknowledgment, approval, compliments etc. I believe these are extremely important motivators to every person, and I have written a Kindle book explaining how to do it well – Employee Recognition: The secret to great team performance, which you can use as a detailed guide.

(Above comments adapted from an article by David Mielach of Business News Daily.)

Your gratitude wins trust and respect from others

You can actively listen to others, you can thank people for their work at a personal level, you can recognize their work at an organizational level, you can be polite to others, and you can model good behavior as an example to others.

Feeling grateful to others and appreciating them has several beneficial effects on us individually: gratitude enables us to savor positive experiences, cope with stressful circumstances, be resilient in the face of challenges, and strengthen our social relationships.

Research by Francesca Gino of the Harvard Business School found that even simple expressions of gratitude can have powerful and long-lasting effects on those who receive them.

Photo by AllGo – An App For Plus Size People on Unsplash

Kim Harrison

Kim J. Harrison has authored, edited, coordinated, produced and published the material in the articles and ebooks on this website. He brings his experience in professional communication and business management to provide helpful insights to readers around the world. As he has progressed through his wide-ranging career, his roles have included corporate affairs management; PR consulting; authoring many articles, books and ebooks; running a university PR course; and business management. Kim has received several international media relations awards and a website award. He has been quoted in The New York Times and various other news media, and has held elected positions with his State and National PR Institutes.

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