"Everyone wants to be appreciated, so if you appreciate someone, don't keep it a secret".

Mary Kay Ash

Meghan enjoyed her job as a credit analyst. She worked hard each day to make sure she was hitting her targeted goals while being polite to her boss and co-workers. But, something was missing...

She was unaware of how her work was affecting the department or company as a whole. She did not feel appreciated, and many days, she wondered if anyone noticed she was there.

Meghan, like so many other employees, wants to feel appreciated by her organization and boss. Employee surveys have shown that "feeling appreciated at work" ranks in the top five categories for defining a great job. The other categories include performing meaningful work, being "in" on things, being shown sympathy during a difficult time and competitive wages/benefits.

So, how do you define appreciation? Webster's dictionary defines appreciation as "valuing, prizing, treasuring or cherishing." Another definition is to "value or admire highly"

Why is it so hard for some of us to show appreciation for our employees? It may stem from how we were brought up or our expectations of our employees. As a child or young adult, if you never received praise or received limited praise from others, you may not know how much you needed it to build your confidence. And, if you aren't in touch with how great it makes you feel to be appreciated, you may not know how much your employees need it and you may not know how to show it. Some employers think that employees should be grateful to have a job in these tough economic times, and just receiving a paycheck is appreciation enough. The key to beginning the process of showing appreciation is to catch your employees doing something well and not look for mistakes. This can be difficult for those of us who see the world through critical lenses. You need to believe that your employees wake up each morning and want to do a great job. They do not wake up and come to work expecting to make mistakes and cause trouble.

So how often do you need to show appreciation? According to the Gallup Poll's research on employee productivity, your employees need to be thanked or shown sincere appreciation once every seven days. Once every seven days seems like a lot, especially if you have 10, 20 or 30 direct reports, but taken individually, your employees are craving positive feedback. Did you notice the word "sincere" in the sentence above? Many bosses are capable of saying "thank you" to their employees but it is often just those words with nothing specific. This form of appreciation is okay for a while but then loses its punch without any specific reasons why. The feedback needs to be sincere and not feel like a "to do "item that must be crossed off their bosses's list. 

So, what does showing appreciation look like? Well the new golden rule in the workplace is to"treat others as they would like to be treated" and not necessarily "how you would like to be treated". How do you know how your employees like to be treated? There are a few universal ways but mostly you need to ask them and observe what motivates them. Here are a few universal ways:

• Handwritten thank you note with the specific activities or behaviors you appreciate in your employee. An additional idea that is an added perk is to mail it to your employee's home so their family and significant other can read the words of praise. As a manager, it is a great idea to keep a stack of thank you notes/cards in your top drawer to write when the mood strikes you and your employees do something terrific.

• Being mentioned in your company newsletter is another written form of showing how much an employee means to your organization. Share a brief sentence or paragraph about the specific activity that is so valuable to you and your department in the newsletter and your employee will terrific for quite a while. You see the written word is a gift that keeps on giving as it can be read and re-read numerous times with lasting effects.

• Praise your employees in front of other employees for a specific activity or behavior that you appreciate. This will give the added bonus of letting other employees know how to please us.

• A bonus check is always a great reminder to your employees of how much you appreciate their extra efforts. This is a great way to keep talented employees especially if they have not had a salary increase in several years due to budget constraints.

•  Time off is fast developing into a favorite perk as our lives can become consumed by work. Generations X and Y, in particular, strive for work/life balance and giving them time off for great work may make you a rock star in their eyes.

Now that I have mentioned a few universal ways to show appreciation, there are hundreds and thousands of ways to show appreciation in a more customized way "as the employee would like it." The way to find this out is to ask your employees or observe what motivates them? One employer chose to rent a convertible for a week for an employee who drove an old, worn down car. This employee would often talk about his dream car and the boss listened and delivered it to show his appreciation.

Another boss paid for an employees's house to be cleaned by a service because her employee would mention how her house was a mess and she did not have the time or energy to clean it.

Showing appreciation is one of the most critical aspects of being an effective boss. By remembering how great it feels for you to be appreciated by your boss, you will remember to share this feeling by appreciating others who work for you.

As the economy improves, showing appreciation may be the only differentiator between you and that competitive company down the street who may be looking to recruit and hire your talented employees away from you.