I am convinced it is human nature to focus on the bad, be it bad service, a bad attitude or bad behavior. We see it all around us, and, like so many other things in our sound-byte society, we have grown accustomed to it! When I speak, I often say that not only have we come to accept mediocrity, we actually expect mediocrity!
Allow me to encourage you to seek good service, good attitudes, good behavior. When you have a great meal in a restaurant, have your waiter bring the chef out to your table so you can compliment him/her. It’s a lonely, fast-paced job sending excellent meals out all night and not getting any reaction unless there’s a problem! Imagine giving gifts out all day, every day, and never hearing the words “thank you”! Think about the people who clean your house, your office, your garden. Yes, of course you pay them, but a reward does not always come in the form of money.
Maybe some of you have read Gary Chapman’s “The 5 Love Languages.” The same principles apply to those who give us excellent service! They seek recognition and deserve your feedback – otherwise, how can they improve or grow? Do we hold our children, loved ones, or employees accountable for things we don’t tell them how to do?
Here’s another benefit of celebrating a job well done: it makes it easier to give constructive criticism when the performance is not to your satisfaction. If you always give praise, you have raised the bar of expectation for future work. That person or establishment will not want to disappoint you, so they will raise their game and go out of their way to receive your praise. Pavlov would have defined this as a conditioned response. So, the next time someone – anyone – does something really good for you, tell them, thank them, or better yet… refer them!