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Are you Praising Enough?
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Last week I conducted a manager’s retreat that lasted almost 2 days. In an effort to keep everyone enthused, I stumbled upon a group exercise that helped in that effort. Consider doing this with your sales team to show the power of praise.
Ask everyone to write on a piece of paper his or her proudest business achievement in 2009. Collect the sheets. At your next sales meeting, write on a flip chart – How does it feel?
Start reading the achievements with great fanfare. Encourage the team to hoop and holler. After you’re read one’s achievement, ask your salesperson how it feels to have the team cheer loudly? Have he or she select one word to describe and write that word on the flip chart.
Keep reading achievements and keep cheering. Make sure everyone chooses a word not already on the flip chart.
After everyone on the team has shared an emotion, you will have a whole list of emotions that result from praise.
Teaching point:
Every time one
praises another, be it a customer or teammate, many of the emotions on the
flipchart are experienced. Suggest
that your team, despite the hustle and bustle of the beverage business, never
forget to find time to praise others.
