Normal is Boring ? Really?

As people, we crave for something that is not normal, something that is different and this always excites and energizes us.

But when it comes to Recognition, organizations get mixed up between what is normal and what is different/exciting. Recognizing the top performers is "Normal". The same folks who get the recognition are also typically the poster boys / poster girls and are expected to be recognized. While the audience may clap when these folks get recognized, do they really get excited? It's like saying that I reached the office today in 30 minutes, the same time it takes me everyday, and I am excited about this.

So how do we use Recognition to really excite/energize employees? The simple answer - when you recognize employees who are not typically expected to get recognized. Wn you do things that are not normal. Now this does not mean you recognize someone for nothing. If you just look (not even hard), you will find that most people do afew things well once in a while that could merit some recognition (maybe not the big award, but a mention in a team meeting with a voucher thrown in). If the recognition is given genuinely for a specific activity/task the individual has accomplished or a behaviour the employee has demonstrated, it will be very meaningful to the employee who receives it. If it done in a manner that is impromptu (or seemingly impromptu), say at 11:05 AM amidst the cubicles, it will snap everyone out of their desks and excite them (simply because it is not normal) and create a charged up work environment.

Image Credits:
1) http://www.lendio.com/cms/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/bored-employee.jpg
2) http://g-square.blogspot.in/