on praise and recognition

I love my job.

Sometimes it probably seems like I don't. Because sometimes the people and situations make me angry. But I do.

I am SO lucky to work for a company that is values based, that stands by its values, that invests in its leaders and am even more lucky to be viewed as a valuable leader by people in that organization.

Today I was talking to someone who used to work at the executive level about what I valued and what I needed from my leader and we were talking about recognition. I told him I thrived on positive recognition, and he said he did too. But what else he said really got my wheels turning. He said that as you grow in position, responsibility and authority, less and less positive recognition comes to you from your leaders. That positivite feedback has to come from the people who work for you, and their attitude. It may not be that they praise you or recognize your efforts. But if they enjoy working for you, and you've created an environment where they like to be, then that is praise-that is positive recognition.

He's right. (He's right most of the time.) I don't need someone to tell me I'm doing a good job to know I'm doing one. I am great at my job. I thrive on meeting challenges and exceeding expectations and making the people around me better, too. And if they love to work for me, then that is where I'll find my success.

I also love that at my new location I have the opportunity to get exposure to more of this thinking. I have been challenged in the past 6 months, definitely. Did I think more than one time about handing my keys over and walking away? Absolutely. But I have grown as a leader.

I am elevating.


And I LOVE my job.