A Carrot a Day: A Daily Dose of Recognition for Your Employees

"The celebration of one success launches a thousand more." ~Adrian Gostick and Chester Elton Can you achieve world-class results through recognition? We all know how it feels to be appreciated and yet why do so many companies focus more on profit and less on encouragement? Adrian Gostick and Chester Elton are the world's leading authorities on employee motivation and explain how a steady diet of "carrots" is a much wiser way to build a strong workplace. This is a place where people are committed to company goals, are much happier, live much longer and respect their employer. What are the carrots? They are ways you inspire, challenge, encourage, reward efforts and celebrate achievements. This book is organized by the days of the year and reminds me of a desk calendar with quotes. Each page is filled with helpful suggestions and quotes by famous people. The ideas I loved: A Day Off for No Reason At All - now there is a way to garner some appreciation... Dressed for Success - Reward an employee with a shopping spree for clothes Perform a Random Act of Kindness No More "Good Jobs" - avoiding generic responses There are some surprising entries, like the one on February 11 where the authors show how you can reward failure and have a positive result. Just because someone failed, doesn't mean they didn't try or take great risks. "People are afraid to risk in their jobs, primarily because of fear that failure will bring some sort of reprisal or ridicule. When this atmosphere is present, growth and innovation are stunted." ~February 11 A Carrot A Day is an excellent resource for managers who want happy and productive employees. ~The Rebecca Review

Managers who want helpful ideas on how to raise profits, company morale and client service/satisfaction will benefit from reading the daily insights found in "A Carrot A Day". Once I started reading the daily doses of how to regularly recognize solid effort and results, I started to notice more of the value our employees were creating. Although I did not refrain from reading the entire book, I enjoy taking a couple minutes each day to refresh myself with each days, recognition dose. This book is a solid investment for any manager or person who wants to create a successful environment where value is created, in and outside a company or organization.

Bosses sometimes overlook the power of a kind word or an expression of approval. But to an employee such an expression can mean everything. This book is filled with great daily tips to help bosses remember to recognize deserving employees. For an employee its the little things that keep you motivated. I wish my boss would read this book!

After I thoroughly read A Carrot A Day by Adrian Gostick and Chester Elton, I realized how beneficial recognizing employee strengths is to increasing a company's value as well as the employee's value to the company and themselves. I would definitely recommend this book to every managing executive who wishes to parlay employee value.

The practical concepts offered in this book simply make sense. On a business level, these real-life action items provide great ideas to truly motivate my employees. I have to believe that if company leaders would truly embrace these principles they would not only enjoy more passionate employees but they'd also enjoy the bottom line impact. On the personal side, I also appreciate the hints that translate into being a better husband and dad.