Back in January on D’s birthday I wrote a post about celebrations and how we should celebrate achievements and foster a working environment that does just that. But also a working culture that encourages people to share and be proud of their own personal achievements.
It was on Day 026 when these posts were young. byflock wasn’t yet born and I was sharing my views about the type of work environment I want to create. Creating that kind of place, where people are looked after and where everyone grows is still part of what drives me the most in pursuing this dream.
We all have a lot to be proud of and I wish that people would be better at sharing and shouting a bit about the good things they’ve done. I understand why people don’t and one of my biggest problems when starting to write these post was getting over tweeting a link to them every day. “Who did I think I was?” “Would anyone actually read them?” “Would I loose followers and what would the people I respect think?”. I forced myself to get over it. If I’d loose followers or if someone didn’t like my posts, well, then they weren’t for them so fair enough. As it turns out I haven’t lost but gained followers and there are a fair few of you who read these posts. Something I’m very proud and thankful of.
Sharing that you’ve done something good is not about saying that you are better than anyone. It’s not to say that what you’ve done is perfect. It’s just about sharing the joy over what you have achieved or what you are good at. And noone has the right to bash that to the ground with a snarky remark. Unfortunately people do and unfortunately those kind of remarks, or to be met with silence, is what’s holding people back from sharing the things they are proud of. So think that little bit extra before you make a negative remark in response to what someone else might have done, posted or said. There’s always a person on the other side and what do you actually know about them?
Yesterday I saw what effect a positive comment had on a whole team. Words are powerful and we should use them to make each other grow. Not the opposite. And as for the Jante law, sod it. If we’ve done something good or are happy about an achievement we should say so.
Tomorrow – Day 194 | Being without signal
Image source: www.flickr.com/photos/nataliejohnson/2776045330
