The Perfect Compliment
Abundant gratitude.
On this day before Thanksgiving, even if you’ve already logged off from all your work for the week (how marvelous!), consider taking a few minutes to thank someone you work with.
The perfect compliment to give someone today is ANY compliment.
From the mundane and generic word of thanks— to the insightful and beautifully penned reflection— it all counts. It all adds to a spirit of camaraderie in the air, which is the promise of Thanksgiving.
Work relationships are strange. We spend so much time with our co-workers and clients. Especially if we work in an office, a studio, a school, or any other kind of shared environment.
We see these people beside the coffee maker almost every morning, and yet we know very little about the true nature of their lives outside of work.
The holidays are a time of great merriment. They also tend to be a time of heightened sensitivity.
Maybe a colleague decided not to splurge on that plane ticket to go back home, and now they’re sorry they won’t be there. Maybe someone just went through a divorce. Maybe someone experienced the death of a close friend or family member this year. Maybe there will be a gaping hole at their table, which no amount of stuffing can fill.
With work relationships, you might be aware of this kind of thing. Or you might not be.
And so, I urge you to reach out.
In the midst of finishing your to-do list and dashing from here to there, reach out. Reach out and tell someone in your workaday community that you appreciate them, that you are grateful for them.
Better yet, reach out to three people.
As we enter the holiday season, keep in mind its strange doubleness.
On the one hand, we spend our time gathering with friends and family. We go to more parties and we mingle and we laugh and eat cookies…
And yet, there are quieter moments at the holidays as well. Sometimes in traffic or circling crowded parking lots, there are quiet spots that invite reflection.
In these moments, we notice the passage of time. We think of holidays, and of times, and of people gone by.
Sometimes this hits us just by listening to old music; music we’ve always loved…
We’re all more sensitive at this time. Realizing this can help us navigate work through the holidays with grace.
Even if you’re flying high on holiday cheer, allow for the possibility that someone at your work may be struggling. Therefore, keep an attitude of empathy.
And if you happen to find yourself in a low moment during this holiday season, I can tell you one of the easiest ways to elevate your own mood is by giving someone else a compliment.
A simple ‘good work’ or an ‘I love that’ in an email sends an energy of uplift outward as well as inward. There really is an energetic boomerang affect.
“Love is a big fat turkey, and every day is Thanksgiving.”
- Charles Bukowski
When it comes to giving people praise at the holidays, don’t be a tight feather-butt scrooge McDuck. Be a goddess and pay someone an extravagant compliment.
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
Cheers, Jane