I have witnessed the rawness of emotion, pure joy and the simplicity of happiness in the years that I have been building RedBalloon. On my road of discovery I learned that Australia & also New Zealand are not ranked well in the global score card in the Happy Planet Index.
I do question why we as Australians are not a tad happier… it might be simply because one of our core needs is not being nurtured – that is our need to be appreciated.
The job that many employees do every day is not witnessed by their supervisor and as such they may well go home feeling undervalued. So whilst we have been busy in RedBalloon for Corporate designing great recognition programs for organizations – I began to think about all the people that are not ‘touched’ through our programs.
This century we are so connected – and yet many people still feel unbelievably alone. It is the deepness of connection to other people on the planet that makes us feel ‘alive’. We are at our best when we have shared a joke, a hug or a meaningful conversation. We thrive when we are noticed, and when we notice others.
As the founder of a gifting business, I have seen the profound difference gifts can make and simple recognition– it is one of our languages of love. I am in a fortunate position of meeting many people and being able to genuinely inspire people to follow their own dreams.
I don’t claim to have everything sorted out and smooth when it comes to happiness (and I’m sure I have given a gift that has missed the mark too). Accepting that imperfection is part of the journey… and that there is nothing bad or wrong with that is okay too. But it does not mean that we give up either.
What I have learned is happiness is infectious and one of the simplest ways to make someone’s day is by acknowledging them authentically by saying “thank you”.
It is easy to ‘pass it on’. If you chose to authentically, ‘Thank’ five people a day for what they have done for you – and you did that for 100 days then 500 people are going to feel better for it.
Those 500 people might in turn ‘Thank’ someone else .
I’d like to capture more of these stories – simply and effectively we are making this country a happier one.
To share your story about what happened when you started saying five-thanks-a-day go to fivethanksaday.org
The rules to a great thank you are simple:
1. Do it straight away
2. Say why you are saying thank you – authentically
3. Look the person in the eye / or write a hand written note – but be personal
4. Do it over and over again – and watch how fantastic you feel too.Let me know what happened.
jorge says
nice post – i have a suggestion for you: if you can look up with wooboard (@pollenizer) as i feel they have something of a platform for employee recognition – would be surprised if there are no synergies between RB and them – all the best and keep writing
jorge says
cool ..
(hate to be second!) 8)
Naomi Simson says
Hi Jorge, Thanks that is the second time today that name has come up – I will follow it up…
Ricky says
What a adorable looking dog! I always love this kind of dog but remember i never get closure to big dog…lol 🙂 Anyway, nice pics Naomi!
Stephen says
Hi Naomi,
Your right. A lot of times we get so tied up in the ‘busy’ that we forget the basics of telling an employee their doing a great job and giving them a hear felt thanks for what they do day in day out – that makes a real difference.
In business I find that if you also thank the person and let their boss and their bossses boss know they are doing a great job it really shows you care. It’s great for senior management to thank staff members for doing a great job – and they feel and extra connectedness (if such a word) to the organisation – so push up and push down.
My business partner when we have challenges, constantly reminds me that I am doing a great job and it makes me feel awesome. I know make sure I pass this onto other colleagues and I now ensure that I tell my wife how proud I am of her – with a new 1 year old baby called “Alexender” that she is doing a great job and “thanks” for being a great Mum, business women and a fantastic partner.
Francesca Webster says
I agree, saying thank you costs nothing and makes your team and the people around you feel great!
Both the words ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ are so underused and so easy to use daily wether its to your team members or to the person serving your coffee.
I love that you have you have your dog at work! We also have our dog at work every day….’Scampy” is our 3kg pink coat clad, Head Of Security and Head Of PR a dual role performed effortlessly and that shares happiness and joy to all she connects with daily 🙂