May I offer you a delectable morsel?
One time today, or sometime in the next week, offer someone something fabulous that they didn’t expect.
Do all of the tedious project that you were supposed to split with your workmate.
Give a customer an extra — a free add-on, dessert on the house, advice on implementation, an introduction to someone who can help their business.
Help a colleague with something personal: offer a lift to the mechanic’s shop, pick up lunch when you know they’re slammed with work, take some flak for them, teach their kid to throw a curveball, send an extra-nice gift for their daughter’s wedding.
Next time you’re out with friends, pick up the whole tab. In fact, take them someplace extra-nice with the understanding that it’s on you.
Treat your subordinate to a perk usually reserved for the muckety-mucks.
In their first week on the job, take the new employee in your department out to lunch with some of your friends. Shower them with company swag (if you have good swag — ours is excellent). Show them the secret handshakes. Show them where the best coffee is stashed.
If you’re a system administrator or the like, take a newbie by the hand and guide them through the job-tracking tool / purchasing database / CRM system / accounting software / expense-filing system. Treat them like they’re smart and the system like it’s needlessly complex (which is often true).
Hand out actual chocolates.
Get people laughing.
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In sum, hand out goodies like it’s Mardi Gras — not with any expectation that the recipient will pay you back, but just because it’s a human, generous thing to do.
I have the good fortune to work at a company where this sort of behavior is routine. (We have the plaudits to prove it.) But I know a lot of people don’t share that luxury. This week — today — why not take it upon yoursely to change that?
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(Photo by VanessaO.)
Category: The working life
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I do this now and then with single stem flowers, like roses, or gerbera daisies for the women in my company. I give it to them with the statement “Here is a flower for no good reason. Blue skies.” I am always rewarded with a smile.
I am of the firm belief that you get back what you put out into the world. Many people mistake that for that “law of attraction” concept that was pushed by Oprah for a while, which I find to be manipulative in origin…what can I say to you that will return to me what I want?
I guess I see that if you look for negative, that’s all you will find. If you cultivate positive, just the act of sharing that positive changes you. Good managers develop the positives in order to mitigate the negatives.
I can tell you it works, wonderfully.
Blue skies,
Lark
I think I would accept if you offered THAT chocolate to me.