Last week I re-tweeted a blog post from Tom Peters, the best-selling business management guru.  In Appreciation! “Tool” No.1 Tom shares his own growing appreciation for a quote by the American psychologist, William James who said, “The deepest principle of human nature is the craving to be appreciated.”

Tom goes on to talk about the power of appreciation and his belief that bosses-managers-leaders (not to mention parents and teachers and spouses) should express appreciation more often.

So why don’t people recognize others more often?  That was a question Senior Consulting Partner Mark Paskowitz of The Ken Blanchard Companies asked 650 people who joined him for a webinar on Reward & Recognition on a Limited Budget earlier this week.  Mark asked participants to choose from among the five reasons he hears most often in his work with clients.  81% of the audience responded.  The rank ordering?

1. Lack of time (25%)
2. Not part of their personality style (20%)
3. Lack of awareness (15%)
4. Lack of skill/competence (15%)
5. Afraid of leaving someone out (6%)

The general sense is that recognizing and expressing appreciation can seem like a complicated process sometimes.  It doesn’t have to be.  A quick word of appreciation, a sincere thank you, and just noticing on a daily basis is all that is required in most cases.  For more ideas on how to get started, check out yesterday’s post on Don’t Overthink Recognition and Praise.  For a more complete look at the entire subject of reward and recognition, check out the recording of Mark’s webinar.

Catching People Doing Things Right Twitter Contest Winner!

Congratulations to Lance Dumigan, today’s winner in our Twitter contest to “catch people doing things right.”  Lance was recognized by Deborah Mourey.  Lance will be receiving a personally autographed copy of his choice of one of Ken Blanchard’s latest books.  Congratulations Lance—and good on Deborah for taking the time to recognize him!