Time to say 'thank you'

As the fall sports season comes to an end, this time of year can be tinged with sadness, anxiety, or depression. Instead of being down about the season ending, I believe we should focus on thanking people who helped us during the season. Research suggests thanking people lifts a person’s spirits. How often do we thank people who help us?

Gratitude is a thankful appreciation for what we have received tangible and intangible. When we show gratitude, we recognize the source of where goodness lies. The loneliest people are those who do not thank others.

When you are engaged in an activity or project, many times we are so engaged in what we are doing, we forget to thank all the people who have helped us along the way. For twenty-two years an organization named America’s Drug Free Productions has produced the C.H.A.M.P.S. Heart of Texas Bowl. This is a national junior college football game. The corporate sponsor for the last several years has been TIPS-USA, a cooperative purchasing program of Region 8 Educational Service Center.

The workers and volunteers producing the bowl game are relentless in their dedication to making the game the best junior college football bowl in America. Over the years the 22nd annual bowl game has taken place in Copperas Cove, Waco, and currently in Commerce, Texas. Outstanding volunteers have made this bowl game the envy of junior college football. Blake Cooper, Bowl Director, continually thanks all the dedicated people for their unselfish and diligent work.

When was the last time you expressed your appreciation to someone? Expressing appreciation from the heart is one of the most rewarding gifts. Yet, words of appreciation seem to be hard for people to say.

I have always wondered why it is hard for bosses to tell people within an organization they are appreciated. When people do not hear appreciation, they begin to wonder about their worth.

An attitude of employee appreciation starts at the top of an organization. It is amazing how much is accomplished when workers are valued. A simple act of kindness can make all the difference in another person’s life. However, society many times views words of kindness as sissy or fake. It takes a bigger person to say thank you, express genuine appreciation, than it does to speak negatively.

The Bible teaches us that it is better to give than to receive. Giving gifts and saying thank you expresses appreciation. The joy is in giving, although I have seen bosses giving gifts, writing notes, and saying kind words only because they wanted to receive something in return. These kinds of people are found out over time and have difficulty developing a cohesive team of comrades. Zig Ziglar in his book How to Win Friends and Influence People talks about the fake boss. Employees can usually tell if the gesture of kindness is genuine or has ulterior motives. Managers who remember thanking people who work for them may find that those employees feel motivated to work harder.

Thought for the week. “Gratitude is the ability to experience life as a gift. It liberates us from the prison of self-preoccupation.” John Ortberg

Dr. Jack Welch is an educator and college football coach. His doctorate is in educational administration, and he has been an educator, administrator, and football coach, mentoring young minds, for over 40 years. He is also the author of Foundations of Coaching. He can be reached at jackwelch1975@gmail.com.