Having a bad day? Need a little shot of inspiration? Create your very own ‘kudos file’ to motivate yourself
BY Rebecca Johnson
Published in the July/August 2014 issue
It’s summer. You may be wondering what happened to your New Year’s resolutions. And with 2015 months away, this is no time to start anything new, is it?
Actually, it’s never a bad time to begin a kudos file. A few days before last Jan. 1, I read an article about how keeping a kudos file throughout the year is a way to remind yourself of special moments, thank-you notes and successes. I liked this idea and realized I had the perfect place for such notes: a black-and-white, heart-shaped tin box that my new watch came in.
You can use this same concept in your eyecare business. Did a patient thank you for excellent customer service? Write that down and put it in your kudos file. Maybe you topped your personal best in sales. Celebrate with a note that you can pull out to inspire you on a slow day.
Other items for the kudos file include printed copies of complimentary emails, certificates of achievement, notes to yourself (favorites of mine include “I am blessed” and “Life is about choices”) — even that time your business was mentioned in INVISION. And although many people like to store their notes in a special box, you could stash your kudos in a file on your computer or mobile device.
Encourage your employees and colleagues to keep kudos files, too. It’s a great way to stay motivated throughout the year. It’s also a helpful tool for people to use in completing their self-evaluations at review time. Managers and employees alike often tend to look only at the last few months of performance. Keeping a kudos file is an easy way to make sure that none of the great things your team members do during the year get overlooked.
I look forward to reading my year’s worth of kudos on Dec. 31 — and dipping into them on days between now and then when I need some extra inspiration. My 10-year-old granddaughter Savannah saw my tin box and asked what was in there. I told her to open it and look. Of course, she wanted her own tin box and I just happened to have the perfect one for her. I told her that we would share our boxes with each other in 2015. I very much look forward to see the kudos of a 10-year-old!
Start your kudos file today. By the end of the year you, too, will be able to savor your milestones and achievements.