How often do you thank your students for choosing to attend your institution? Do you make it a habit of complimenting your faculty and staff whenever they’ve expended extra effort on behalf of the college?

We, as a society, have generally gotten out of the habit of using those please and thank you words of courtesy. Do something for another in your midst and, at best, you may get a blank stare. Many institutions are putting increased emphasis on customer service, but gratitude is not a word you’ll likely find mentioned in their mission statements.

When I worked at Rollins College many years ago, I regularly set aside an hour or two every Friday afternoon and spent the time writing thank-you notes to everyone at the institution who I’d caught doing something right that week. And whenever a faculty member would take the time to grant a media interview, I would get the provost to write that professor a note, thanking him or her for casting positive light on the college.

Countless surveys have been conducted over the years to determine what factors most influence job satisfaction. Salary and other direct benefits usually come in third or lower on those surveys. Listed at the top is the desire to be recognized and appreciated for their work.

If you don’t have a thank-you campaign underway at your institution, why not start one now? Adopting an attitude of gratitude and thanking people for the good work that they do doesn’t cost anything, but it can sure create tremendous amounts of good will and increase productivity. And who knows? Perhaps your complimentary campaign just may become contagious …

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