What I learned about feedback and motivation today

One of the important parts of my job is to help organisations and particularly, people managers, to understand just how important it is to give people the recognition that they deserve. I help them to see how it motivates, inspires, encourages and improves performance.

This morning I had a brilliant reminder of just how powerful a moment of recognition can be.

At Peopletopia, we are lucky enough to have a great bunch of clients, who tell us that they are grateful for the work that we do with them to improve their businesses. It's the best part of the job, and it would be tough to do the work sometimes, without the recognition at the end. Sometimes, that feedback seems to come from a place that means more, and it can be the simplest thank you that makes a massive impact on how we feel.

I've been working on an exciting and challenging project for a client that I have enormous respect for. I've been working with them for a number of years. Yesterday, I delivered a key part of that project to them. It really mattered to me, I had a huge desire to get it right, to have a positive impact and to give them great value. I was hoping for the usual "great, thanks" type email, but.....

...what I got back this morning has changed my day, maybe my week, but certainly for the moment, it has changed how I feel about what I do. It was just a few words (less than 15 in fact), but they were heart-felt, genuine and powerful. They were personal. They have absolutely lifted me today and as a result, I will go about my work with more drive, more energy and with more pleasure.

It has really reminded me just how valuable a few words can be, We get swept up and absorbed in what we do, in the chaos of the day, but after this morning, I will remember just how important it can be to take a moment to recognise the efforts and impact of those we work with.