My Gift : A Video for YOU
Customers who LOVE doing business with you come back with money and friends.
People who LOVE where they work because of who they work with go the extra mile without being asked to.
There’s a reason productivity goes up when people are happy. Happy people have 65% more energy than unhappy ones. Would it be fun to see this number in action? Sure it would!
This is Valentine’s week – the week of LOVE.
Now before you run away, let me share with you one of my most favorite definitions of love. It’s comes from author of the book “On Caring,” Milton Mayeroff.
“Love is the selfless promotion of the growth of the other.”
Sit with that a moment.
Gorgeous, isn’t it?
My teacher Barbara Frederickson, who wrote the book LOVE 2.0 believes we find love in micro-moments of positivity delivered and received frequently.
So today I give you 11 Valentine’s Week Activities that you can do to generate more of that kind of love, and a video shot at last year’s Loyalty Conference. It’s called Leadership, Loyalty and Love.
Make a list of all the things you really love about your job (even if they seem small to you.) Focus on the power those little things can have to make your day more joyful. Then go spread the joy around.
Surprise someone at work with a beverage from the cafeteria or the coffee shop. See if you can find a couple of old stick-on bows from the holiday and fancy it up.
Find 3 – 5 people at work to whom you can express genuine appreciation – and go do that daily. (Co-workers, customers, suppliers, boards, volunteers.)
Do a random act of kindness to someone who will never know it was you who did it.
Do a random act of kindness to someone who knows it comes from you – find a fun way to deliver it.
Make a sincere connection with 5 people this week. Move outside your comfort zone and find a few people you don’t know really well and connect with them. Eye contact and a smile on your face actually changes the circuitry in their brains. People feel connection on many levels. When you have goodness in mind for others, share that through your actions.
Find someone who needs your help and help them graciously.
Put a big poster board in the cafeteria space that says “Things I LOVE about working here” and leave lots of colorful markers and stickers around so people can express themselves artistically.
Make a gratitude jar. (Get a large clear jar, and lots of strips of colored paper) Set it out at your next meeting and at the start of the meeting ask everyone to contribute one thing they are grateful for – at work or anywhere else in their lives. Ask everyone to speak “Today I’m grateful for…” as they make their contribution to the jar. In between meetings keep the jar, paper and pens in a conspicuous space and encourage people to express gratitude freely. You can also buy a Gratitude Journal to keep in a prominent place. Lots of my clients have them and write in them often.
Collect inspiring quotes about love, work, caring, daring, sharing. Compile them in a book and print it. Give it to both employees, customers, suppliers, community connections. Let the creative ones among you run wild and illustrate, decorate and make your book of love come to life.
Send, give, and eat, chocolate.
That’s a nice sampling. I’ll bet there are at least 11 more things you can think of that will bring more love and joy into your workplace.
As people become friendlier and closer and share their genuine appreciation for each other and the customers, they become more engaged in their work. They are more likely to remain loyal to you and to go out of their way to keep the customers happy. Gallup extols the virtues of social connections and “best friends” at work.
Me? I call it all an “Appreciating Cycle.”
Share the love,
JoAnna
PS When you can take the time please enjoy this gift from me – a full length 40 minute video from me. It’s called Leadership, Loyalty and Love.
And if you are so inclined to want to be a more loving and joyful leader you can still take advantage of our $77 savings by using the code Special77 at www.PositiveEnergizer.com Become one – you’ll love it!
