You should never be selfish in encouraging others. We were meant to be encouragers. Many people are so self-centered that they never go outside of themselves to help others. You can blame it on being shy. You can blame it on not knowing others. You can blame it on being tough-minded. Stop blaming and start doing.
There are people everywhere who need encouraged. Encouraging others sets you free to move beyond your own problems and focus on results. I often want to say to CEOs, "Push yourself away from your desk, walk through the organization and just begin to encourage others." I know productivity will rise and the implementation of strategies will move forward. Why? When a leader chooses to encourage, the whole organization notices.
Now, will everyone follow suit? No. Some people love being negative and self-centered. But the more you encourage the more others will feel empowered to do the same thing. If you encourage consistently as a leader you will change the culture of your organization. There are ways to encourage that will help the process. Here are a few ways to encourage to change your culture:
1. Saying life-giving words directly to a person
2. Sending a card to build up someone else
3. Making a short phone call to someone that needs encouragement
4. Giving a small gift as a token of care and appreciation
5. Saying a big THANK YOU to your workers or those on your team
6. Email someone to build them up
The list could go on. To feel encouraged YOU must encourage. So get up! Do something for someone else! Give someone a call just to let them know that you are thinking about them. The power of encouragement goes beyond words. When you learn to encourage it becomes contagious. Little by little you will change your culture. One more thing...to change your culture through the power of encouragement you must engage in encouraging others every day. So what is your strategy? Don't sit there and think about it...do something for someone else.
Be Encouraged,
Rick
