by Jim Solomon and Bruce LaRue, Ph.D.

Why is so much written about gratitude and leadership? Simply because it’s that important!

It’s important to the Customer

Integrator Leaders clearly understand that they exist to serve their customers and to make life better. According to Karlyn Borysenko, Gratitude is your competitive advantage. “Gratitude isn’t just about giving your customers that warm, fuzzy feeling. Showing appreciation has a direct impact on the bottom line…When asked why they stop dealing with a company, 60% of customers will say it’s that they perceive indifference from the salespeople.” – employees and management show or express little to no gratitude towards them.

It’s important to the Organization

Our goal as Integrator Leaders is not only to make our organization more effective and efficient but a better place to work. This pays dividends well beyond what can be achieved by trying to squeeze out more productivity through some new management fad or efficiency measure. Integrator Leaders understand that happy people are productive employees.

By consistently putting emphasis on leading with an attitude of gratitude, according to Mark Deterding, leaders:

• Build confidence in others
• Improve productivity
• Foster innovation
• Develop positive relationships
• Build trust
• It’s important to individuals

Knowledge workers tend to be more committed to the development of their own portfolio of skills than they are to any organization. Most often, these people don’t quit the company—they quit their boss. And this doesn’t necessarily mean that the boss is a jerk; it means that individuals simply may not feel important to the organization in a meaningful way.

Josh Bowen, 3X5 Leadership, reminds us of the power of gratitude: “A person who feels appreciated will always do more than is expected.” According to Jon Gordon, “Gratitude and appreciation are also essential for a healthy work environment. In fact, the number one reason why people leave their jobs is because they don’t feel appreciated. A simple thank you and a show of appreciation can make all the difference.”

What’s in It for Me?

“Grateful leaders are humble leaders”, is what Naz Beheshti’s research has revealed. “Gratitude is an important individual quality for leaders to cultivate in themselves.” Psychology professor Sonja Lyubomirsky found in her research that gratitude is intimately connected with humility. “True humility is a mindset that involves less focus on self and more on others, and an ability to see the strengths and value of others. Lyubomirsky and her research team found that gratitude fosters humility, and vice-versa. They have a “mutually reinforcing” relationship with one another, creating an “upward spiral” of personal and professional growth. Both gratitude and humility are integral to emotional intelligence, an essential leadership quality in today’s world.”

Make it Specific & Clear

Remember to be specific and clear when sharing gratitude. Kim Scott reminds us that Radical Candor Praise is specific and sincere – “… Be specific and sincere with praise…the more specific you are the better…nothing worse than getting the abstract “good job”…not even remotely effective…it’s like checking a box, being a cheerleader, makes you feel like the boss is not even aware of what you do…if you don’t mean it, don’t say it…be specific about what the person did; and how it fits in or supports the entire organization to achieve its objectives…Radical Candor praise is specific and sincere.”

Enemies of Gratitude

And finally, Dan Rockwell reminds us, in a humorous way, of “The 5-Enemies of Gratitude that blow up your leadership”

#1. Bob Betterthan – an expert faultfinder. He’s ungrateful because no one quite measures up.

#2. Sam Serveme – won’t say it but he believes people exist to serve him. He may seem humble, kind, and polite but arrogance beats in his heart.

#3. Nelly Knowsmore – knows how everyone should do their job, even though she doesn’t actually do their job.

#4. Tammy Tellsmore – loves to tell people what to do, but they never do quite enough.

#5. Harry Hogsthespotlightmore – believes the applause others receive is undeserved and the applause he receives is inadequate.

Integrator Leader Reflections

• How is gratitude a part of your leadership philosophy and practice?
• How are you developing a culture of gratitude within your organization?
• How large is your ROI from including gratitude as a way of life?

“Leadership is about leading change; everything else is management.“

Adapted from: “Seeing What isn’t There – A Leader’s Guide to Creating Change in a Complex World” by Bruce LaRue, Ph.D. and Jim Solomon. Deeds Publishing, Atlanta.