The Happy Burro

(second in a series about Actions v. Words)

I wrote about thanking people a few times in the past few years.  On November 22, 2007 I wrote about falling in love with thank you. The 27th of November, 2008 found me writing about telling people what you are thankful for. I even thanked Kurt Vonnegut for the influence of his writing on my life.  There are many others that I have thanked via this medium.

Each post was a quick way to thank someone publicly, and in writing.  Or to urge us to thank someone with words, in person, face-to-face:  a rare expression in today’s internet-connected world.

What Does Thank You Look Like?

• a job well done?
• someone’s smile?
• a cash bonus?
• a promotion?
• a hug?
• a verbal ‘thank you’?
• a hand-written note?
• an email?

Feels Like Thank You

What thank you looks like is more about what the words ‘thank you’ feel like when proffered.  Which from the list above would make you feel thanked the most?  I have experienced all of these forms of ‘thank you’ and each made me feel as if I was being thanked by the person making the gesture.  This was partly due to the meaning I made of the event, as well as the profound genuineness in the offer.

How do you say “thank you” in a meaningful way?

Joe Raasch :: Aug.23.2009 :: Life :: No Comments »

This is the first in a series of posts on Actions versus Words.

Many of us are familiar with the saying, “actions speak louder than words.”  This essentially means that what someone does is indicative of their beliefs or intent to a much greater degree than what they may say. What happens when actions and words are in alignment, and no one believes it?  Here are some of the possibilities:

Valueless Leadership

If the values of the leader are in question, then words, actions and even silence are taken with a measure of wariness.

“Leaders whose stock-in-trade is glib talk with survey-driven promises are nothing more than beach dwellers who build sand castles instead of possessing the courage to draw a line in the sand.” – Steve Roesler

Beware the grand speech with many fancy graphs and no plan.  Require specific direction with decision points and accountability in the plans.

Rudderless Leadership

If words and actions are aligned, yet change on an all-too-often basis, this can cause even the most ardent of followers to hang back and wait for the next change in the wind.  Saves them a lot of wasted work time getting set for one initiative/direction, when everything changes so fast.

In this school of thought, you say something in order to have said something and what has been said is of little moment. – Michael Wade

Pick an option.  Make a decision.  State your case.  Keep to the subject.

Maybe

Maybe there is more to this action versus words dilemma than previously thought.  Where does trust come to play in all this?  Or results?  Would you work with a leader who is mainly results-focused – but doesn’t necessarily keep to the stated alignment of actions and words?

Joe Raasch :: Aug.09.2009 :: Uncategorized :: No Comments »