That’s what my license plate covers say – almost. They really say Gratefully Deadicated, paying tribute to my very favorite band, the Grateful Dead (www.dead.net). I appreciated the double meaning when I purchased them nearly twenty years ago, and I still do today.
As I’ve pondered this week’s blog, it was obvious that I’d continue on the theme of gratitude started by my partner, Tamera, in her November 19th post. But those who know me know that I always want to turn ideas into action and to identify what there is to change or do out of the ideas exchanged.
So, my desired action out of this blog is that we will each give thanks for our blessings and that we’ll do so directly to the “benefactor” who did us a good turn every day, not just once a year on a day designated for that purpose. Can you commit to this? Can I?
When I’m grateful to someone, I always intend to say thank you and acknowledge the good turn. And if the good turn is tangible – like a gift or hospitality, I will employ my Grandmother Ruth’s gold standard – the hand-written thank you note. I do a pretty good job of this and believe that in business, especially with your team members and fellow partners, a hand-written note will set you apart. But often, when the good turn is a member of my team handling an aspect of their job, or a client following through on a key commitment or one of my children completing an agreed upon chore, I am not as quick or clear with my appreciation.
I have “reasons” for not consistently saying thank you for the everyday things, like being rushed, “busy,” distracted, planning to do it when I have time, not needing to because the person is doing what’s expected and more. The bottom line is that I don’t thank my maker, my husband, my children, my parents, my siblings, my partner, my team members, my clients, my alliance partners, my fellow parishioners at church or the many people who deliver services to me enough! Do you?
I know I’m not the only one afflicted with this “I don’t say thank you enough” disease (misery loves company!). When we conduct employee surveys for the CPA and IT firms we serve, team members universally tell us that they wish their leaders would provide more acknowledgment for their good work and more overt and specific thank yous to express appreciation.
I know this world would be a much better place if we each said thank you to someone on our team, in our family or within our circle of friends daily. Instead of waiting until Turkey Day to contemplate all of the great things others do for us, perhaps we should look for someone to acknowledge for their contribution to our well-being every single day – and you probably don’t need to look very far!
I am grateful for all of my life’s blessings – too numerous to name here today. Because God has blessed me and our team in so many ways, we are gratefully dedicated to our mission to change the world – one person at a time. We’re gratefully dedicated to freely share our thoughts, ideas, wisdom, troubles and thankfulness with you. We hope you’ll share yours, too. As the Grateful Dead said, “Believe it if you need it, if you don't, just pass it on.”
Please pass your gratitude on. Starting today, thank someone for their contributions to you every day this week and see if you can keep up that commitment after November 27. I’ll commit to this gratitude experiment – will you?
Gratefully,
Jennifer Wilson
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