The Good Job Effect
There is a pithy saying we use to recognize achievement that needs to be replaced. Calculating the number of times you have heard or said the words “Good Job” would be a colossal waste of time. That pat statement can actually be negative due to its inability to really demonstrate actual value. For proof, look no further than the fact that we use it with animals endlessly. They only hear your tone, so the words don’t even matter. People hear differently. They know how lacking those words truly are.
An Actual Good Job
The determination on whether you accomplished what you set out to do is qualified in your own brain. You can decide for yourself what actually made completion of any task or project good. Sometimes it involves the amount of time involved because we like quick turnarounds. If the completion doesn’t meet someone else’s expectation, the outcome may have been communicated unclearly. If the end point was reached due to the determination of a team effort, does citing it good mean anything to the participants? They may have made completely different contributions, but everybody got the trophy words.
Specifically Good
Communicating specifically is the answer to this issue but is often not done when the easy way out is a blanket statement. Leaders and managers who use this statement are uncreative at best and uncaring at worst. The heart of an employee is lined with examples of their boss’s appreciation and ability to make them feel special. Providing B+ work is fine when you know that it isn’t being noticed. Deserving an A+ and getting less recognition will influence not only the effort next time but demonstrate that the manager didn’t care either. They were just following the acceptable business practices that they have been exposed to and don’t want to go to any extra trouble to pave their own path.
Indifference Goodness
Taking stock of what is really good takes discernment. You actually have to develop a baseline for what is truly good and not just accept another mediocre result. But we don’t want to insult the inadequate results and use the easiest label available to get through the moment. There are exceptions. Stating “Good Job” has been an acceptable sports practice forever. The difference is that in the heat of play, there isn’t always time to give a full account. That’s what the news conference later is for; the accolades have time to be specific when the outcome is known to everyone.
Noticing Goodness
For starters, let’s stop using blanket statements when there is time for more nuanced notice. Better management skills are developed when they actually have to put in effort to cite what they should already be noticing about their subordinates. Being special can mean something again. People are radically changed when they start to be seen. They start to show up more; they care more. It is possible to trickle this theory down throughout an entire organization if the top brass stops using generic statements to describe the hard work their talented colleagues are completing. When specifically acknowledged, we don’t just toil in the dark. Shining light creates higher expectations because something creative occurs and we are stimulated differently. Even better, ask what part of a project was vexing and notice what is brought to attention. But keep patting your dog on the back and repeating those other words when appropriate. You are both able to see what recognition creates.
Are you tired of the same old tactics that are accepted in the business world? Can you create a new standard and easily ditch the canned statements? Are managers and leaders just bored or unstimulated when they lack creativity?
