As managers, many of us often forget the power of praise.

I had the opportunity to compliment an employee yesterday.  She had done some wonderful work several months ago that went unnoticed. I tripped across it today and made it a point to go out of my way to let her know that she had literally saved me several hours of work.  She seemed pleased that I noticed her efforts and relatively surprised by the thank you.

I just noticed that she has since spent some additional time continuing her efforts. It appears as though the two minutes I spent saying thank you not only made her feel appreciated, but also motivated her to continue the great work. While I didn’t say thank you for the purpose of getting more out of her, it is striking that the ROI on the two minutes of time I spent seems to have been realized in less than 24 hours.

This is a good reminder for all of us who are in a position of management. Everyone thrives on appreciation. Take time to thank an employee today and make it a part of your standard routine — you might be surprised how far it goes in motivating your team and reinforcing behaviors you want to see from them.