It was early morning, and we were gathered in the hotel lobby when I walked up to Andrea and said, “Thank you!”. She looked at me funny, wondering why I was thanking her. You see Andrea was a project manager on a training rollout of 25 classrooms taking place in Columbus, Ohio. This was the beginning of what would become a four-year project.
As one of many on the team of facilitators, I wanted to thank her for all that she was doing for us. This weeklong training initiative for the US Department of Defense was bringing together hundreds of attendees from not only across the US but from overseas as well. There was a great deal at stake and many things could go wrong. But Andrea was there remaining calm, appeasing the client and making sure that her team of facilitators had everything we needed to deliver exceptional learning experiences for all the participants. Each day in our end of day debrief, we huddled to go over updates, logistics and concerns. Andrea always thanked us for what we were doing and I just wanted her to know that I appreciated what she was doing for us.
Being appreciated makes people feel good. In turn, we pass on those good feelings to others, perhaps through our own generosity, random acts of kindness or a smile that could speak volumes. Whenever we receive gratitude, it impacts our brain. Dopamine and serotonin get released, two neurotransmitters that regulate our emotions and make us feel good, happy and are mood enhancers. And this has an impact on business; on employee engagement, on employee retention, on productivity and enhanced customer experience.
Gratitude is the healthiest of all human emotions. The more you express gratitude for what you have, the more likely you will have even more to express gratitude for. – Zig Ziglar