In the humble, midwestern way that only Ted Lasso can do, he utters the phrase, ‘I appreciate you.’ As safety leaders, we often find ourselves focusing on what’s wrong. We don’t thank people for what’s right. The expression of appreciation is often missed.
I once worked at an auto manufacturing plant. The vice president proclaimed to me that he could ‘easily walk out on the floor and find someone performing an unsafe act and point it out.’ I gave him a moment to think about that about that statement. He paused, thought, and then spoke. He sheepishly said, ‘that’s the wrong approach, isn’t it?’ Lesson learned.
Darren Male, Emerging Risk Leader at Fugro notes, “As Health and Safety professionals we can find ourselves inadvertently focusing on the negatives rather than celebrating the positives. It’s essential that we recognize, broadcast, and celebrate the 99.9% of things that go right.”
While working for an airline, I was coaching front line leaders on giving positive feedback. Conceptually, the leader understood it. Implementing it was difficult. He struggled to observe what was going right. He was used to looking for the negative.
We first worked on getting ‘new eyes’ to see the positive. Then we worked on making a genuine statement of appreciation. We had to define the specific behavior to appreciate. That was hard. It was uncomfortable. It took several tries. Finally, he got it.
His journey went from, ‘thanks for working safely’ to “I noticed you were in the proper position to bring the aircraft into the gate. Can you tell me why that’s important?” He followed up with an affirming statement that emphasized “proper positioning protects the folks on the ramp, prevents damage to the aircraft, and improves on-time performance. I appreciate that you executed this departure perfectly. Thank you.”
The employee receiving the complement was known to be a curmudgeon. He rarely smiled. At the end of the conversation, he had a grin from ear to ear. The leader, too, had a smile.
Appreciation can’t be vague. It must be specific. Providing that specificity tells your team that you care. You are observing the operations. That you want to see the proper behaviors more. That your people are doing the right things.
Data shows that leaders should compliment their employees five times as much as they provide corrective actions.
Susie Scott, an accomplished safety leader notes, “Why is it that a simple gesture like ‘Thank You’ is so hard to come by in Corporate America? Two short words, delivered authentically, have the potential to make someone’s day. Too often, those words are forgotten.
Let’s take Ted’s approach to appreciation and make it part of our daily routines. Just make sure we are specific about what we appreciate!
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