When you are down in the long grass of running a business, it is really easy to get bogged down in the detail, feel like you are pushing treacle uphill, and, frankly, wondering why you bother.
Running your own business isn’t all sunshine and roses. It’s bloody hard work. Anyone who tells you it isn’t is a big fat fibber.
And when you do it on your own, you have to be all things – including your own cheerleader a lot of the time – marketing your stuff, selling your schizzle – it’s EXHAUSTING. Quite a lot of the time, you do all this stuff without so much as a thank you, and that’s being generous.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s lovely to receive testimonials that verify all your hard work, that provide that social proof that what you do makes a difference to people, that what you offer your clients is of value to them. It really is. A good testimonial is a great motivator.
But if you are the only one patting your own back most of the time it can be demoralising.
It can be really demoralising.
To the point where you stop caring, switch off and frankly can’t be bothered anymore.
And that’s disastrous for your business – because once you stop caring, you stop believing – and once you stop believing, you lose the magic.
Every superhero needs a plan. I’ve blogged about that before – and that plan also needs to include recognition and reward, especially if you are part of a team environment as part of how you run or market your business.
A little bit of recognition goes a very long way. I should know. Not only have I been lucky enough to win three industry awards in the past, and to win the first one at a very difficult time in my life, but I have also run awards too. When I was regional leader for 4Networking back in the day, I ran two annual awards ceremonies to celebrate and reward my teams for the amazing hard work & camaraderie they showed in running my 26 face to face networking groups. And every single one of them was a volunteer.
Recognition needs to mean something. It needs to be relevant, it needs to be real. There’s no point rewarding everyone in the room. What does that actually say about your reward structure? That every one is the same, that no one stands out enough to shine, that you are scared to point the spotlight on an individual?
Reward teams that are successful, reward individuals that have gone the extra mile, reward individual loyalty. Recognise someone’s worth, integrity, ability & achievements.
It doesn’t have to be with a trophy or a certificate – sometimes, it can just be with words. The power of words is extraordinary. Just a little recognition can be just what someone needs to hear at that time. It could be the thing, that day, that lifts them a little – that stops them feeling like they are shouting but not being heard, that they are turning up but no one is noticing, that they are invisible.
Just a few words to recognise and reward can be enough. Next time you want to motivate or reward someone, think about it. Think about telling them they are doing a great job, that they have motivated you, that they have inspired you, that they mean something to you, your team or your organisation.
I’ve been lucky enough to be nominated for an award at the Business Success Awards this year – that’s the first time I have been nominated for an award in a very long time. I’m thrilled to bits to be nominated & am excited to attend the awards dinner in June.
But this also meant a lot recently.
Trophies are lovely.
Words are special – because superheroes need recognition too.