THE IMPACT of THANK YOU

Saying thank you is proven to lift results. Build a habit of thanks and see how it makes all the difference in your team.

"Thank you..." How hard can it be?

Saying thank you is not just polite. It has been proven to have real impact on business results. In fact 80% of employees say they would work harder for an appreciative manager.

In short: appreciation = acceleration.

But before we get into that, a short exercise:

Did you know that:
• Just 15% of managers regularly say thank you
• And 35% of people say their manager has never thanked them.

Ask yourself:
• How many times did you say thank you in the last week?
• How many times could you have said thank you?
• Why didn’t you?

WHY say it?
When we say thanks, or show gratitude, it acts as an accelerator, speeding up work and improving effectiveness, innovation and results. It makes people want to do more and work harder. It reinforces that you want them to do the same again and that you trust them.

No cost, big impact
I had a senior manager reporting to me about 6 years ago. I noticed he rarely said thanks. And it annoyed me.

When I asked him why, he said "I shouldn't have to thank employees that are already getting paid to do work".

Wait, what?

I helped him learn to say thank you more. He saw how the simple habit of appreciation lifted his results. He noticed that he felt good about saying it too, that the team also began saying it more and that results improved.

Gaps in gratitude?
Get your appreciation habit back on track using these:
• Be deliberate: flag time in your diary or meetings to say thank you
• Be proactive: don’t hold back. It costs nothing to be grateful.
• Be loud: in team meetings, in forums and on the phone.
• Be timely: no benefit in saving them up, do it today
• Be consistent: fairness and regularity will build more trust.

Not sure what to say or how to say it?
Download this manager guide for a thank you script and more.