6 Recognition Pitfalls to Avoid

Gina started as a waitress in a restaurant chain. As a new member of the team, she lacked self-confidence but focused on acknowledging what her colleagues did well. She started making a point of thanking her workmates and writing them little notes, sharing what she genuinely appreciated about them.

About a year later, the company’s senior managers visited the restaurant. They wanted to discover why this outlet’s results were consistently significantly better than others in the chain.

After investigation, all the indicators pointed to one waitress—Gina. Her positivity and sincere regard for her colleagues had a major impact on team morale. It created an uplifting atmosphere among the team, which flowed through to the ambience in the restaurant. Customers noticed and came back more often. They also brought their friends, which meant more bookings and higher earnings for the restaurant.

Gina ended up with a promotion, and leadership started looking at how they could foster the same culture in their other restaurants.

Why Recognition Matters

Psychology shows us that people perform at their best when they feel valued, acknowledged, appreciated, and respected. Staff or team members who receive regular praise are happier, more loyal, spend less time worrying, and are quicker to clarify instructions when needed. Giving immediate, specific feedback is one of the best leadership, parenting, and relationship strategies available because of its power to reinforce behavior and boost motivation.

Rather than nagging people about what hasn’t been done or pointing out mistakes, highlighting positives makes people want to go the extra mile. You can use this principle to enhance relationships in any area of your life.

There are, however, some pitfalls to avoid. Here are six of them:

1. 
   
   

   Inauthentic Praise

   People can sense insincere praise a mile off. While regular recognition is the ideal, forcing it can backfire; people will doubt your integrity if you give inauthentic feedback. This is by far the most important pitfall to avoid.

   According to a Gallup State of the American Workplace report, leaders can improve work quality by 24% and lower absenteeism by 27% simply by doubling the number of times they recognize employees. Sounds easy right? The caveat is that the praise needs to be authentic. Ensure the nice things you say are merited and well deserved.

   When choosing between frequency of praise and sincerity, always opt for higher-quality, genuine compliments over contrived attempts at flattery. Avoid over-embellishing. It will only undermine trust and make people less likely to value your opinion in the future.

   To excel at giving sincere praise, make an effort to notice what people are doing. Pay attention to the big and small things people do that add to success, so you’re ready with examples of things to acknowledge.

2. 

   Praising Only Star Performers

   Sometimes it’s easiest to thank and reward the person who brings back the signed contract, launches the product, or wins the award, when really it was a team effort to achieve that goal. Much like giving all the praise to the player who scores the touchdown, this can demotivate everyone else who contributed in vital ways. Avoid breeding apathy and discontent by celebrating team success and being careful to include everyone involved.

3. 

   Non-Specific Praise

   Always remember the parenting advice to avoid phrases like “good girl” or “good boy.” These generic statements don’t carry a lot of meaning. In the same vein, if you say “well done” or “great job,” it doesn’t have much weight. People will easily forget these vague phrases.

   Skilled leaders know how to deliver powerful, specific praise that people might remember weeks, months, and even years later. The sort of feedback that inspires and drives people on to greater heights.

   It’s important to specifically state what was good. For example, “I really liked the way you kept the meeting on track today. You did an impressive job of refocusing the conversation despite so many people trying to take us in different directions.” This lets the person know what they did well.

   It can be even more powerful when you tie your praise to a character trait you admire in that person. For example, “You’re such a great listener. I always admire how you’re able to make people feel heard and build them up, while being able to redirect the conversation and keep things moving. It’s a valuable skill!”

4. 

   Comparison Praise

   One thing we often hear people say is “You were my favorite,” or “You were the best.” This isn’t as helpful as you might think. Being told “You gave the best presentation today!” can actually demotivate people. At a subconscious level, we all know we can’t be “the best” every time, which can create future worry. Ironically, telling someone they’re better than others can stop them from striving to perform at their best.

   It’s much more effective to applaud people’s effort, skill, and progress. For example, “You spoke so clearly today and made great eye contact with everyone. I really liked how you closed with an emotive story. I could see you put a lot of effort into crafting that. It felt very natural and was really captivating.”

5. 

   Only Leader-Led Praise

   If people feel that showing appreciation at work is something only managers need to (or can) do, they miss opportunities for collegial appreciation and a culture of gratitude. There are lots of ways to foster a culture of appreciation in the workplace.

   While formal recognition, such as employee of the year awards, is often management-led, informal recognition at a team level can be just as motivating. Examples include sharing positive feedback about someone in a team meeting, emailing congratulations and copying someone’s manager, or leaving a positive note on someone’s desk.

   Some workplaces facilitate staff-led praise by having thank you cards available in the staff room, “high five moments” in meetings when anyone can speak up with words of thanks, or a monthly award with team member nominations. In the last instance, the nominators receive coffee vouchers or a premier office parking spot as a small thank you, a great example of rewarding the behaviors you want to reinforce in your team culture.

6. 

   Goal-Focused Praise

   Yes, achieving the end goal is a fantastic thing to applaud. Too often, however, we miss the opportunities to praise toward the goal.

   Ironman athletes, who complete a 2.4 mile (3.86 km) swim, 112 mile (180 km) cycle, and 26.2 mile (42.2 km) run, train themselves to celebrate each milestone along the way—each buoy they circle in the water, each cone they go past. This self-praise maintains motivation toward the end goal and ultimately helps them reach the finish line.

   Applaud the smaller wins on the way toward the bigger ones. This builds confidence and sets the tone for success.

---

Share this article