Be Grateful for Employee Engagement (MMP#30)

Employee Engagement: Monday Morning Percolator #30

Robert Emmons wrote a lovely short book on thanks! or how the new science of gratitude can make you happier. I am thankful for the book and thought about it in relationship to employee engagement.

Dr. Emmons, the editor in chief of the Journal of Positive Psychology made a strong personal and research case for the importance of gratitude in our lives. It can increase happiness over a long period of time and have a positive impact on both sleep and energy.

Genuine gratitude can overcome a sense of entitlement that can foster disengagement. Here are 3 of Emmons 10 practices to enhance your gratitude:

• Keep a gratitude journal
• Ask yourself what you have received from others
• Use visual reminders to express gratitude.

I encourage you to reflect on this statement about gratitude near the conclusion of the book:

I’ve come to experience the freedom of gratitude. By appreciating the gifts of the moment, gratitude frees us from past regrets and future anxieties. By cultivating gratefulness, we are freed from envy over what we don’t have or who we are not. It doesn’t make life perfect, but with gratitude comes the realization that right now, in this moment, we have enough, we are enough.

Genuine gratitude is an attitude and way of life that will elevate employee engagement and lead to even further gratitude.

Photo credit: Thank You! by http://flickr.com/photos/bradi/544518481/