The concept of gratitude came up in our last post. Digging deeper into this notion, we discovered a survey that was completed by The John Templeton Foundation.
Gratitude is related to civility because the behavior of saying “thank you” is a small action that can lead to respect of others. When we are thankful, we take time to appreciate the value of others and we see the world as bigger than ourselves.
The Templeton Survey of 2,000 Americans, taken in 2012, revealed interesting findings about the place most of us spend a majority of our time, the workplace:
• People are less likely to express gratitude at work than anyplace else
• 74% reported that they rarely express gratitude to their boss.
• 70% reported that they would feel better about themselves if their boss were more grateful.
• 81% reported that they would work harder if their boss was more appreciative.
What would happen if people first appreciated their boss or something that is good about their workplace?
Here’s a challenge for November: Make a list of 10 things that you appreciate about your boss or your workplace. The challenge is intended to determine for yourself if just appreciating things at work will make you feel or act differently.
In case you are wondering why you should bother, check out this article “Why Gratitude is Good?”
The Wallace Centers of Iowa is a non-profit organization with the mission of enriching community through sustainable food and civility initiatives. We teach civility as a foundational component to leadership and talent development.