Chester Elton

Want to drive engagement?

Want to really win the hearts and minds of your team?

Take a trip together!

I have worked at the O. C. Tanner Recognition Company for almost 18 years now and, being a recognition company, they really know how to make you feel appreciated. One way is through annual sales incentive trips. This year the trip is a Mediterranean cruise: How cool is that? We will spend 8 days on the ocean going to 5 different ports of call creating memories with our families and coworkers and senior management. It will be an incredible experience for us personally and a way to build strong relationships professionally.

Not every company can afford to go on a cruise, but you can create your own trips that can be just as impactful. Stephen Thorne, President and Founder of Pacific Dental Services in Irvine, CA has an annual conference in San Diego every year where he not only brings in his dentists and their teams, but allows them to bring their spouses as well. It is a couple of days of fun, learning and team building that impacts all of his employees and their families. It is brilliant!

If you want to reach the hearts and minds of your employees, don’t forget to reach the hearts and minds of their families too. Because, not only do the families enjoy these trips, but they help them better understand the goals of the organization and why their spouses are putting in all those extra hours. They better understand the sacrifices that have to be made for the company to move forward. It creates more understanding and support at home.

So find a way to create some memories with your team. Go on a trip together, create a memory and build a stronger team. You will get to your goals faster while building a lot of good will at home. I KNOW it works because I have been on several of these trips myself with my wife and sometimes with the kids too. They are memories that inspired me to work harder and better every time.

In this podcast, Chester reviews one of his favorite new books, "Peak: How Great Companies Get Their Mojo from Maslow" by Chip Conley.

5.24 minutes | Download | Read the Transcript

I just flew Continental Flight 41 from Rome to Newark, NJ and this is the Carrot Flight Crew!

Lead by Eddie Goldman, these three attendants at the back of the plane made our 7-hour flight a delight. They were courteous, helpful and kind. I am always impressed when I see a team that enjoys their work and each other.

I got to know Eddie best given the fact that he was also on our flight to Rome a week earlier. He is originally from Hawaii but speaks flawless Italian--how cool is that? It's a little unusual, so I wanted to know how it was possible that a guy from the Aloha State could speak Italian so well.

Eddie loves his job. It is evident in everything he does and how he does it. He realized on his frequent flights to Italy that having an Italian speaker wasn’t always possible, and that it was critical for the passengers to fully understand the instructions and the procedures on the flight. In case of an emergency it could be life saving. So he started to study the language.

He took a few classes, made some Italian friends and practiced, practiced and practiced! I speak semi-fluent Italian but I can tell when someone speaks well. Eddie doesn’t just speak Italian well; he speaks with a wonderful accent. I thought that perhaps his mother was Italian!

Here is what I love about this story. He wasn’t asked by Continental Airlines to learn Italian. He saw a need at work, and took it upon himself to develop that skill. He knew it would help the crews he worked with, the passengers on his flights and make the flying experience better for everyone. It was HIS idea.

When we take it upon ourselves to commit to personal excellence, everyone wins. It builds better teams, team members and a better customer experience.

For his wonderful commitment to excellence, I awarded Eddie the Carrot of the Flight!

You can learn more about Eddie’s story on his FaceBook page.

Giving praise without a purpose is like a boat with holes in it. It just doesn’t float.
   
Recognition is not about being nice; it’s about results. So, before you make a single awards presentation, sit down and figure out what you want to accomplish. Don’t hold back, imagine your ideal future. Then consider these specifics:

  *  What do our clients value?
  *  What does the company value?
  *  What do our employees value?
  *  What is our basic purpose?
  *  What is our competitive situation?
  *  What will make us more productive, more valuable to our company, more efficient in the purpose of our vision?

Once you’ve got a plan, put it into action through recognition.

The Orange Revolution Podcast: Chester Elton explains how adding a personal touch to your workplace communications can drive opportunity and help you build engaged teams.

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