I would guarantee any group, team, or organization that adopts this perspective of acknowledgment and recognizes the wins along the way with their team will reap the rewards in many ways.
As an example, in Nursing, we celebrate INTERNATIONAL NURSES WEEK every year around May 12, which coincides with Florence Nightingale's birthday. Of course, every country does its celebration, with a theme and various activities.
I have been invited to be part of local nursing events as a keynote speaker, etc. Last year, one event was postponed due to a lack of meeting space. I assured the Nurse manager that there was no problem with the delayed celebration, and suggested to her that perhaps they could incorporate monthly mini-celebrations into their staff meetings. It has made a big difference for the teams coming together and celebrating the small steps of progress they are making in both large and small projects and initiatives. The difference this makes in connecting the nursing teams is rewarding not only to the nurses, but to the people they serve and care for.
Leaders who regularly celebrate small wins with coffee, pizza, muffins etc. are far more likely to have a motivated team. Leaders who never say thank you because ‘I’m not thanking people for doing their job’ are less likely to.
Interesting perspective and one that isn't really talked about in the Leadership sphere.
At its core, leadership is about goal completion, and it is usually a long term game. Plans need to be set, preparations made, and re-alignments are needed on a consistent basis. For leaders, often the biggest challenge in accomplishing a goal is trying to keep their teams motivated during the length of the project —hence the use of milestones or 'mini goals'.
When you break down a big task into small, manageable tasks; the project as a whole becomes palatable. You will be less prone to feeling overwhelmed by the size of the goal, and you will start to notice progress (however small it may be).
But what should one do when a milestone is reached? What should a leader do when another box on the list is given the green tick?
Celebrate and risk complacency among the team?
Don't celebrate, and risk complacency regardless?
The thing about not celebrating small wins —it completely defeats the purpose of milestone goals in the first place. Why would you break down a big task into smaller tasks if you aren't going to pat yourself and the team on the back when that task is completed?
Next, people need feedback. They need to feel like they are progressing towards a goal —and celebrating a small wins does exactly that. And finally, if a leader doesn't want to celebrate a small victory, it means that he doesn't appreciate his team.
Ultimately, leadership is about managing people, not completing goals. And people aren't robots. They require emotions, appreciation, routine but also spontaneity. If a leader is so focused on completing a project, that he cannot bring himself to celebrate small, meaningful victories; he isn't a leader, he is a boss.
The lesson: leaders cannot afford to be stingy with bestowing appreciation on their team.
I would guarantee any group, team, or organization that adopts this perspective of acknowledgment and recognizes the wins along the way with their team will reap the rewards in many ways.
As an example, in Nursing, we celebrate INTERNATIONAL NURSES WEEK every year around May 12, which coincides with Florence Nightingale's birthday. Of course, every country does its celebration, with a theme and various activities.
I have been invited to be part of local nursing events as a keynote speaker, etc. Last year, one event was postponed due to a lack of meeting space. I assured the Nurse manager that there was no problem with the delayed celebration, and suggested to her that perhaps they could incorporate monthly mini-celebrations into their staff meetings. It has made a big difference for the teams coming together and celebrating the small steps of progress they are making in both large and small projects and initiatives. The difference this makes in connecting the nursing teams is rewarding not only to the nurses, but to the people they serve and care for.
Thanks so much for adding your encouraging perspective here, Darlene.
Leaders who regularly celebrate small wins with coffee, pizza, muffins etc. are far more likely to have a motivated team. Leaders who never say thank you because ‘I’m not thanking people for doing their job’ are less likely to.
Don Draper famously told us "That's what the money is for!"
The writer's of Mad Men weren't making him an exemplar in that moment, but many forget it because of how quotable it was.
Interesting perspective and one that isn't really talked about in the Leadership sphere.
At its core, leadership is about goal completion, and it is usually a long term game. Plans need to be set, preparations made, and re-alignments are needed on a consistent basis. For leaders, often the biggest challenge in accomplishing a goal is trying to keep their teams motivated during the length of the project —hence the use of milestones or 'mini goals'.
When you break down a big task into small, manageable tasks; the project as a whole becomes palatable. You will be less prone to feeling overwhelmed by the size of the goal, and you will start to notice progress (however small it may be).
But what should one do when a milestone is reached? What should a leader do when another box on the list is given the green tick?
Celebrate and risk complacency among the team?
Don't celebrate, and risk complacency regardless?
The thing about not celebrating small wins —it completely defeats the purpose of milestone goals in the first place. Why would you break down a big task into smaller tasks if you aren't going to pat yourself and the team on the back when that task is completed?
Next, people need feedback. They need to feel like they are progressing towards a goal —and celebrating a small wins does exactly that. And finally, if a leader doesn't want to celebrate a small victory, it means that he doesn't appreciate his team.
Ultimately, leadership is about managing people, not completing goals. And people aren't robots. They require emotions, appreciation, routine but also spontaneity. If a leader is so focused on completing a project, that he cannot bring himself to celebrate small, meaningful victories; he isn't a leader, he is a boss.
The lesson: leaders cannot afford to be stingy with bestowing appreciation on their team.