Noticing Appreciation Languages at Work
Photo by brian.abeling
“Thank you for indulging my recognition.”
I laughed when I saw that text pop-up on my phone. After all, how often does someone recognize and then acknowledge that they expressed appreciation in a way that doesn’t match how you like to receive it? Let’s look at the complicated chain of events happening there:
- You did something (because you’re awesome like that)
- Person saw what you did and wanted to show appreciation (because they’re a great leader like that)
- Person expressed appreciation in the way that felt most genuine to them (+1 for authenticity!)
- You realized what they were doing and knew it was an appreciative act even though it didn’t resonate with you (+1 for appreciation awareness)
- Person remembered that you prefer a different form of appreciation and sent a message (+1 for relationship awareness)
Many employees feel underappreciated at work. That means step 1 takes place and the other steps might not happen. Actually, it’s possible that steps 2 and 3 occur but due to the appreciation language mismatch, you didn’t realize you were being appreciated. Oh no!
Gifts, words, physical touch, acts of service, quality time—what types of appreciation do you see in your workplace?
