I’m trying to work on how I give thanks to those around me. I feel like I’m pretty good about giving frequent thanks when it’s appropriate, but I’ve realized (in part from books like Thanks for the Feedback, and in part from other conversations) that my “thanks” isn’t all that good.
It’s not that giving a sincere “thank you” is a problem, but just that appreciation could be much more effective with just a bit of extra work.
“Thank you for making my favorite dinner”.
“Great job with the charts you pulled together for that report.”
“Excellent work staying focused with your delivery in that presentation.”
Not only will your message be appreciated at a higher level, the person you give it to will have more actual feedback to work with for next time, making things even better for everyone involved.
This is something we worked on in the preschool classroom. Both to make the praise more personal and also to praise the effort rather than “You’re so smart” A very hard concept to get across to the adults. Your explanation is great. Ha ha – well thought out and looks like you put some time into it.