I wanted to take a different approach for this leadership/coaching article. My goal is to get more participant involvement within the C# Corner community. I really enjoyed Mahesh Chand’s article “Mindset Of A Growth Community” and what really resonated with me were the sections covering courage, support, and engagement. In the spirit of his article, I am asking as many people as possible to participate in a Leadership Challenge. The goal is not to win as an individual but rather as a community.
It is no surprise that positive reinforcement is a powerful motivator when trying to maximize the performance of an individual or a team. The challenge is,
- By Friday, September 8, reach out to a team member, peer, direct report, or someone who matters to you in your life. Deliver a positive comment to that individual.
- Respond in the comments section of this article with the message you gave to the individual.
- Share the reaction you received from the individual.
Tips on giving positive feedback
I recommend following a methodology developed by Dr. Thomas Gordon. This includes delivering the message with,
- A specific description of their positive behavior
- The positive effect this behavior had on you
- How their behavior made you feel
Many times, we give positive feedback without much thought. Sayings include “great job on that project” or “solid work over the past few days.” These statements do not capture the positive work actually performed. Here is an example using Dr. Gordon’s methodology:
“Joe, I was really excited when you fixed three reporting bugs in the beta release because that allowed me to attend the QA meeting with my boss and come up with a strategy for our team. Thank you so much.”
I look forward to seeing a lot of participation. Feel free to ask any questions, as I will be monitoring the feedback/comments throughout the week.
Look for my next article during the week of October 2, 2017.