Seldom in life do we find anything that carries the energy of success. Celebration rituals allow us an opportunity to powerfully embrace this energy and use it to direct meaning and performance. Because of the “time deprivation” of business and life, the other side of this coin is unfortunately the case for a large percentage of organizations. They are so busy achieving, that successes, big and small go relatively or even completely unacknowledged. Fueled by the socialized belief that achieving market share projections and other mandates are more important than taking the time and energy to celebrate, organizations are depleting the energy levels of their players… leaving them empty of everything valuable… especially creative energy.
As a performance consultant, the best piece of advance I can offer any person or organization is to focus on your strengths, talents, and successes… no matter how small or insignificant they might seem. I have worked with several organizations that are so focused on fixing what is wrong, that they forget to acknowledge, much less celebrate what is right.
Simple celebration rituals inspirationally force your entire team to rally around behavior and momentum that move you in the direction of accomplishment.
Examples of Celebration Rituals:
- Sales Reps ring a bell with each signed contract; team members respond with “Good job”, “You Rock”, “Way to go”, etc.
- Executive Team Meetings are ended with each department taking 20 seconds to communicate what their team has accomplished in the past week and then everyone making their way around the room with high 5s and supportive rhetoric.
- Formal acknowledgment of individuals to include: work term anniversaries, high performance, industry certifications and/or credentials, marriage anniversaries, birthdays, weddings, etc.
- Yearly ceremonies, 90 day initiation ceremonies, and formal acknowledgement of company, location, department, and division accomplishments or milestones
- A series of forearm bashes from team mates signifying appreciation for the generation of results
High Performance Teams Consistently Celebrate Even the Smallest Successes.
Right now many of you are saying, “I do that”… and deep down you know I am talking about a deeper process than one of simply acknowledging success. I am talking about a specific behavior set, of celebration protocol that is precisely and consistently executed to create a sustainable system.
This means on-going training, orientation and consistent attention that teaches and reinforces your staff on a “system” of celebration and why it is an important element of your company culture.
If your executive team personally and consistently engages in Celebration Rituals, you will have a dynamic labor force that feels recognized, involved and appreciated. You will have the beginnings of a High Performance Culture.
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