Did you know that the science of work has something to say about gratitude? What your parents taught you about being thankful, has been shown to greatly impact the work environment.
In the spirit of the season, I thought it appropriate to share the research that relates the benefits we can expect from being grateful.
Selfishness comes naturally to most people. Wishing for more rather than being thankful for what we have is a theme portrayed in nearly every classic holiday film or tale. Ebenezer Scrooge in A Christmas Carole, George Bailey in It’s a Wonderful Life, and the Grinch in The Grinch who Stole Christmas were all finally saved from their selfish ambition to recognize and savor the smallest treasures of what they had.
Gratitude can be simply defined as the acknowledgement and pleasure in having received. For centuries, the topic was ignored by serious scientists because most believed the concept should be left to the realm of philosophers and theologians.
More recently, as serious researchers began studying gratitude in earnest, they found some surprising benefits for both organizations and individuals.
Gratitude is responsible for significant enhancement of mood, and it increases prosocial behavior (i.e. being kind and doing things for others).
Researcher and professor Dr. Robert A Emmons writes in Positive Organizational Scholarship: The Foundations of a New Discipline:
"The cultivation of gratitude may be important in organizations not only because of the direct effects of improving organizational climate, but also because as a cognitive strategy, gratitude can improve individual well-being and lower toxic emotions in the workplace, such as resentment and envy.
…Studies have shown that employees’ happiness and well-being are associated positively with performance, morale, commitment, and can reduce absenteeism and staff turn-over. The techniques to improve gratitude, a key ingredient in positive emotion, could enhance individual and organizational well-being."
So, regardless of what has happened to our stock portfolios and our balance sheets, perhaps we can remember that the best way to instill well-being to our organizations is to recite the words of George Bailey,
“Hello, Bedford Falls! Merry Christmas, movie house! Merry Christmas, Emporium! Merry Christmas, you wonderful old Building and Loan! Hey! Merry Christmas, Mr. Potter!”
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