Thanksgiving, with its cravings for turkey and a table full of family and friends, has quickly passed and our thoughts turn from thankfulness to what we want for Christmas – wait . . . thankfulness is a year-long essential. That’s the Data Screening challenge – to make expressing your gratitude to colleagues and clients a lifestyle, rather than a season.
The book, The 5 Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace, by Dr. Gary Chapman and Dr. Paul White, tells us that nearly 90 percent of employees leave their firm due to the lack of feeling trusted and valued. Additionally, human resource professionals realize those who work in customer service and hear the most complaints just quietly exit from their jobs.
Chapman’s and White’s book covers five languages (categories) with detailed examples of how supervisors/managers and business owners can express gratitude to their workforce and clients: words of affirmation, quality time, acts of service, tangible gifts and appropriate human physical touch.
The book also explains how the languages rank differently with different individuals. In other words, it tells why some categories work better than others, and why it is important to “read” the person’s preference.
Overall, it is safe to say that everyone places an essential importance on being heard. It is why actively and attentively listening to the person who is speaking is the key to moving ahead in a positive way.
It’s true we all make assumptions about those we work with, know and serve, but this time of year, take a few extra moments to listen and “speak” to your employees and clients in their language of appreciation.
About DataScreeening.com
Data Screening is a Certified Women’s Business Enterprise that has offered business-to-business employment and tenant screenings to human resource professionals and business owners, including staffing companies, for two decades. Among other organizations, they are members of the ASA (American Staffing Association), SHRM (Society for Human Resource Management) and the NAPBS (National Association of Professional Background Screeners).