Joy

"Joy is the fruit of appreciation."  ~Matthew Kelly~

Sounds like a no-brainer, doesn't it.  If you are appreciated, you feel joyful.  It sounds simple, but it doesn't stop there.  You could also say, if you show appreciation for someone, their pleasure will make you feel joyful, as well.  It still doesn't stop there, either.  Ok, so now you have two joyful people in a practice full of other staff and patients, what do you think is going to happen now?  You've got it, it's going to spread.  

People pick up feeling vibes pretty quickly, bad or good, and it makes an impression on them.  It tells them how to feel and react to what is happening around them.  The dominant mood in an office spreads like wildfire.  The person with the strongest personality and the person with the most authority will set the tone for the rest most of the time.  Here's the tricky part, it's not always the same person.  You might have a stressed out, grumpy staff member who has a strong personality working with a happy-go-lucky dentist who just wants to enjoy the day.  Now you have a stressful day ahead of you.  The happiness of the dentist is going to drive the aggravated staff member crazy and she'll start writing her own story.  It might go something like this:  "Sure, he's happy, why not?  I'm doing all the grunt work and he's chatting up the patients.  While I'm sitting on hold with the insurance company, he's in his office surfing the internet.  I'm so sick of that smile of his, I want to wipe it off his face!"  Guess what, within a short time, she will.  Why?  Because she didn't feel appreciated enough to overcome her miserable mood.  Now, he's going to start getting sick of her attitude and he'll start to strike back.  From the way he sees it, not only is she a grouch, she's ruined his mood, too.  Before long, the temperature in the office is frigid and everyone else is feeling it and pretty much sick of all the drama.

Who's fault is it?  Is the staff member to blame?  Yes, in that she didn't reign in her temper and control her mood, but what got her started in the first place?  When people become embittered in the workplace, it's usually because they feel slighted in some way.  It may be a weakness in their personality that causes them to feel jealous about every nice thing that happens to anyone else and prevents them from realizing that they get their fair share of praise and thanks.  If that's the case, you can't cure them and shouldn't try unless you have a degree in psychology and lots of time to invest in that one staff member.  Sometimes the school of experience is the best impetus for someone like that.  When she sees her behavior won't be tolerated, she may get the help she needs.  On the other hand, maybe this is a very hard working staff member who has one of the less glamorous jobs in the office.  Everyone is so used to the fact that she sees a need and gets to work, that it's easy to take her for granted.  When a less hard-working staff member does something extra, the compliments and gratitude may flow because it's so unusual for her to work that hard.  You may just feel like you're trying to encourage that person to pick up more of the slack, but to the one who just does what needs to be done, it may seem like, "Why bother?"

Pay attention.  Is there anyone you take for granted?  If you realize that there's someone who works really hard, but has gone a long time without hearing how much you appreciate her, take her in your office and lay it on thick.  Even if she squirms, inside she's loving it.  When she leaves your office, her head will be a little higher, her smile more genuine, and her heart will sing.  She, in turn, will spread a little joy to someone else, and on it goes.  You throw the first pebble of appreciation and watch the ripple effect happen.  Staff members, do you appreciate each other and your boss?  Do you say thank you, pass on compliments from patients and look for ways to make those around you feel valued?  Do you ever thank your boss for a great day at work?  I know it sounds sappy, but do it and you'll enjoy the look of surprise on his face.  He'll go home happy and his wife and kids will love it. 

I happen to be lucky enough to work for an extremely happy boss who spreads his happiness all over the place.  He sees everyone with kind eyes and thanks us every evening as he walks out the door.  If he needs to give critical feedback, he does it in a way that let's the person know that he believes that they will go on to correct the mistake.  He leaves their dignity intact.  We all love and support him and each other and we know that we have it great.  We can't stop talking about how great our boss is when anyone asks and that's always good for a practice.  

Do you see what an impact you can make, good or bad?  Choose carefully, because whatever you decide, it will come back to you in the end.  So, plant appreciation and reap joy.  You'll be happy you did.