I was going to open with "Celebrate Your Wins," but I thought this headline may get more attention. It seems that ever since the last recession, we tend to talk more about losses than wins. Sales increases and new customers seem to be harder to come by than in years past. At least for most of us. Moreover, the evening news always seems to focus on the negative instead of the positive.
We can't change the news...but we can change our attitude. We owe it to our employees and ourselves to not let the environment we live in create a negative workplace. We should celebrate our wins, even if at times, they seem small and insignificant. We can always find positive things if we look for them. New business gained, positive feedback from customers, strong order days, days with no re-runs, etc. You can make your own list. Ring a bell. Post good news on the bulletin board or white board. Celebrate with lunch or small incentives. Choose your own ways to celebrate, but do it!
It's even easy to miss celebrating your employees. Goals accomplished, a job well done, birthdays, anniversaries, weddings and births are all things that should be recognized and celebrated. I was thrilled this month to get a letter with a personal note from our CEO Mike Marcantonio, congratulating me for 28 years of service and a check for 28 times $X. We have been doing this for years after a consulting company recommended we put this in place along with other recognition for our staff. I think it is one of the small things we do that makes this a great place to work.
Celebrate your wins, create a positive work environment and make your workplace fun. It makes good business sense and pays dividends. Don't ignore the losses either. We certainly don't want to celebrate them, but we should put plans in place to fix them.
Carl and his wife, Judy, owned and operated their own successful Allegra franchise for nearly 20 years before selling the $2.3 million operation in 2003. He is a PrintImage International/NAQP Honorary Lifetime Member and was inducted into NAPL’s prestigious Soderstrom Society in 2010 in recognition of his contribution to the industry.