HOW Gratitude Can Make You More Successful in Business

If you want to make it big in business, hard work, countless nights without sleep, and sheer dedication are a given.

But along that one most simple key to continued success and day-to-day sanity is showing gratitude.

Why is it that it takes us zero seconds of reasoning to complain, but years would pass and we’d still feel uncomfortable to express gratitude? As a matter of fact, it seems like we are badly programmed to overlook the importance of gratitude in business. 

A successful business is built upon solid relationships with your employees, partners, clients, collaborators and even accidental passersby. One way to nourish these relationships is by adopting a habit of expressing gratitude in business.

So here we are telling you that gratitude is essential for making you successful in business.

Gratitude in the Workplace for Improvement

Showing gratitude towards your employees and encouraging them to adopt the same mindset will amend many broken links that cause problems within your business. When a person feels appreciated for their work they subconsciously mirror it through their acts and efforts, which means productivity and efficiency rise. 

You’d be surprised to see how a simple “Thank you” can turn your most insecure worker into an unstoppable force. 

It’s safe to say that gratitude is the antonym to negative feedback which promptly results in bad communication and dissatisfaction. However, we’re not saying to use the power of gratitude in business as an opportunistic weapon. On the contrary, you should show genuine thankfulness and care towards others. Of course, a badly executed task or attitude shouldn’t be addressed with appraisal.

Affirmation Builds Strong Partnerships

Finding faults and pointing them out is the easiest job ever done. On the other hand, recognising the good and affirming it loud and clear is somehow harder. Nevertheless, it helps you connect with other entrepreneurs and build lasting partnerships. No man is an island, and the same goes for business owners too. Correspondingly, success is most easily achieved when we back up each other. 

Once again, the key to nurturing long-lasting relationships with other businesses lies in the power of gratitude. Communicate your appreciation with them. Make them aware of how much you respect their work. It can be a sudden call just to say “Well done”. Or perhaps a lunch, a sincere handshake, a better deal proposal, a box of Cuban cigars, a day at the SPA gift card… In fact, expressing gratitude in business can be anything as long as it is from the bottom of the heart and with no secret agenda.

Be laser-focused when giving acknowledgement

A generic “thank you” to your team is likely to be appreciated, but not nearly as much as giving a very specific compliment and praise to a worker for a job well done.

Showing specific gratitude is baked in at her workplace, says Adria Bagshaw. “We have a weekly all-team meeting, and we solicit shout-outs from team leaders for people who have gone above and beyond, and that really helps build morale,” she says. 

Crystal M. Farley is a career wellness coach and owner of C Far Beyond the Box, based in Windham, New Hampshire. She describes what she does as “working to make people better humans in and out of the workplace.” She is a big fan of expressing thanks in the workplace.

“Lately there has been a big appreciation for wellness in the workplace, and I love that people are expressing gratitude now,” says Farley. However, the Monster poll shows that 91 percent of respondents say that they express gratitude in the workplace, but only 64 percent say that they receive gratitude—there is a big disconnect there, not all of the thanks is landing the way it should.

Keep it up year-round

While the holidays offer a good reminder to express your gratitude, aim to thank your employees for their hard work throughout the year. Taking the time to acknowledge your employees’ work year-round will help keep them motivated and feeling good about the impact they have.

Not only will this make your team feel like winners and encourage them to work hard, you can also reap the benefits. A boss known for expressing gratitude is a coveted addition to any leadership team—your future employers won’t over look this fact. So put monthly reminders on your calendar to make a gesture of thanks to employees, Swann says. It may seem like a little thing, but your team will appreciate you for it. 

Show Appreciation toward Your Clients

Letting your clients know that you value their loyalty and reminding them how grateful you are of their support is a major step towards building unbreakable bonds. 

Expressing gratitude through words goes a long way, but putting those words into action goes even further. Namely, there are many ways to thank your customers and reward them, and loyalty card schemes or early-access programs are definitely being among the best ones. Moreover, impromptu gifts and personalised touches  always strike the right cord, making customers come back and trust their needs into your hands over and over again. Or you can even go as far as taking them for a day out. It’s fun, unusual and it makes them feel special.

That’s all for it. Thanks for reading!!