Celebrate All the Wins!

celebrate big or go home

Celebrate All the Wins!

This is the season for all sorts of big celebrations! We are about to head into graduation season and wedding season, then Mother’s Day, Father’s Day and Fourth of July are just around the corner. These types of celebrations are fun! We love to shower our friends and family with gifts and enjoy parties celebrating their huge successes and milestones. But what about workplace celebrations?

Do You Celebrate All the Wins?

Be honest. How often do you take the time to celebrate the daily wins and smaller milestones for you and your team? We are often better at working hard than at celebrating our hard work. But celebrating is so important and actually enables us to reach our potential – especially when we celebrate early, small wins as well as the big ones.

Celebration is Beneficial

There are so many benefits that come from celebrations:

  • Celebration increases morale and confidence.  When associates feel that their work is noticed and valued, it is contagious and affects the entire organization.
  • People are more productive and motivated to work when they feel acknowledged and celebrated.
  • When celebration becomes part of your personal and professional brand, it can be an effective tool for attracting and retaining team members.

Now, let’s look at the flip side and consider the potential impact of not celebrating. In a study of 200,000 people in the US, 79% of employees who left their job reported doing so because they felt underappreciated. And 78% of employees said they’d work harder if they were better recognized. Yikes. We don’t intentionally ignore people, but we forget to show appreciation. Think about what celebration does for you personally. Think about what a celebration could do for your team.


Easy Ways to Celebrate More

So, if all these benefits are true, and employees and leaders are telling us they need more of them – let’s make this happen; let’s celebrate more. There’s no time to waste. Here are some easy ways to start celebrating more today:

  • Say it. When you recognize someone is doing a great job or putting extra effort forward, have you told them out loud? Don’t underestimate the power of verbally acknowledging and validating someone’s work ethic and skills. A simple thank you goes a long way too!
  • Write it. Try writing an email or, even better, a personal note to thank someone for their hard work or celebrate an accomplishment. Maybe they nailed an important prospect meeting. Try creating a “praise wall” where team members can shout out their coworkers’ accomplishments or a Slack or Microsoft Teams channel specifically for celebrating wins.
  • Share it with others. If you’re celebrating someone’s win, go the extra mile and CC a supervisor or leader on an email to showcase their strengths to leadership. Share and celebrate the win at a meeting or create a space where people can share successes with others regularly, like a success board or newsletter. To go even further, consider giving them a shout-out on LinkedIn–where they can enjoy a celebration from those beyond their workplace.
  • Give a reward.
    • Celebrate success with a small gift. Not many people will turn down a gift card or lunch.
    • If you have the budget, consider a gift that supports their wellness, like a spa gift card or yoga classes. Investing in your team’s overall wellness is a great way to brand and set yourself apart.
    • Another way to invest in your team is to celebrate them with resources or training! Need an idea? Check out our Orange Leaf Academy for practical e-training options. 
    • Providing opportunities for earning a bonus can surely motivate as well.
  • Give the gift of time. If a team has worked hard on a goal that has required them to put in extra effort and hours, consider celebrating their accomplishments with an extra day off. Be sure not to create the expectation that working extra hours is rewarded–a culture of self-care is just as important as a celebration.
  • Celebrate as a group. Consider ways to celebrate team wins. Plan a lunch or dinner outing. Put together a regular awards ceremony to recognize multiple people at once. Plan a team activity–this can also double as a team-building opportunity.

So, don’t leave all those reasons and ideas for celebrating on the table! Just be sure to consider the personality of whom you are celebrating and what might be the most enjoyable and meaningful to them. And don’t forget to say thank you while you celebrate the wins!

This month commit to celebrating more. Celebrate your small and big wins and model this for your teammates–building a work culture of celebration can only benefit you. Let’s Celebrate Big or Go Home!