How do the best leaders increase employee engagement, decrease burnout, and boost retention? With a simple two-word phrase: “Thank you.” Thanking employees is a powerful and underused leadership tool, according to leadership and productivity consultants Wes Adams and Tamara Myles. In an article for Psychology Today, they explain how very effective saying thank you can be.
How much of a difference can a simple thank-you make? A surprisingly big one. Adams and Myles point to a 2022 Gallup/WorkHuman study that showed when managers thanked employees once a week, there was a 50 percent reduction in burnout and turnover. But not enough managers are doing it. In that same study, the majority of employees said they were not adequately recognized at work. And they were 74 percent more likely to leave because of it.
If thanking people is such an effective thing to do, why do managers fail to do it? Because they’re human. Humans are hardwired to focus on the negative, Adams and Myles write. That makes sense. Early humans who paid close attention to the threats all around them were likelier to survive and pass along their genes.
But in the modern work world, that negativity bias can be a liability. It can lead overburdened managers to point out when something is wrong, but not say anything when that same something is right. If you’ve fallen into that habit, as I must admit I have, it’s time to try to change it. Here’s how.
1. Put yourself on a thank-you schedule.
The research says that one thank-you a week makes a big difference. So develop a system to make sure you’re thanking every team member at least once a week. This could mean noting in your calendar when you’ve thanked someone, or else picking one day when you thank everyone for their contributions that week.
2. Make your thank-you individual and meaningful.
Don’t send out a blanket email thanking the entire team for their hard work. Or do send that email, but don’t assume that it will be enough. For a thank-you to be meaningful, it has to be directed at a specific individual. And it has to be specific in nature as well.
A few years back, a researcher at UC Berkeley came up with a highly effective framework for thanking someone. First, say exactly what you are thanking them for. Not “Thanks! That was great,” but “Thanks for creating such a well-thought-out marketing plan.”
Next, acknowledge the hard work they did. As in, “I know it took a lot of work to come up with something so thorough, but your effort really paid off.”
Finally, tell them how what they did benefits you or the company: “I think following your plan will help us reach our revenue goals this quarter.”
3. Be sincere.
Don’t say thank you for anything that you don’t actually appreciate. And don’t tell anyone that they did a great job if they actually didn’t. Chances are, the other person will see right through the fakery. They’ll be less likely to believe you next time.
Instead, think about what you actually are grateful for. Maybe their overall presentation didn’t quite work, but you can tell they worked hard to create interesting slides. Thanks for the things they did right should accompany any feedback about what needs improvement.
Don’t worry that your expression of gratitude will keep them from paying attention to the things they need to work on. After all, they are human. So chances are, they’ll focus on the negative too.
There’s a growing community of Inc. readers who get a daily text from me with a micro-challenge or a thought-provoking question. (Want to learn more? Here’s some information about the texts and a special invitation to a two-month free trial.) Many are entrepreneurs or company leaders and they understand the importance of keeping employees engaged and happy at their jobs. Simply saying “thank you” is one effective way to do that.
