| Have you ever helped someone and they failed to thank you? How did you feel? Would you help them again? One way to get more help from the people who support you is to thank them. Recently I helped a coworker and felt he didn't thank me enough. I saved him hours of time and he could do a small thing that would have made me like him more. I first learned about this technique when I was a child. Adults would tell me to say thank you when I was given a gift or was helped. It wasn't until I read Scott Adams' must-read-book How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big that I learned the importance of thanking people. I started giving better thanks and the result was very clear. Also, think about ways to reciprocate the help. If your company has recognition awards then put one in when you get extra help. Email the person's boss telling him or her about the great support. Praise the person to someone they know and that person may tell your target how you were praising them. Examples:
Today's exercise is to find ways to thank people that help you or give you gifts. Also, watch for cases of when you're not thanked or you get a great thank you. Don't underestimate the power of this small little change you can make. Track the thank you's you give and get and make great thank you's a life-long habit. |