5 reasons to be thankful for your team

Rodney Cox May 26, 2023

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Leaders know leading a team is a tough but rewarding challenge. It takes a lot of things—wisdom, patience, courage, planning, and so much more.

One characteristic that is often missing from leadership lists is thankfulness. An attitude of thankfulness not only benefits you but also your team members. Charles Schwab, the famous American steel magnate, said it best, "The way to develop the best that is in a person is by appreciation and encouragement."

There are many reasons to include thankfulness in your leadership style. Scripture has a lot to say about thankfulness. In fact, it tells us we shouldgive thanks in all circumstances (1 Thessalonians 5:18).

So no matter where you are in your career, give thanks for where you're at during this season. Here are some ideas to kickstart cultivating more thankfulness for your team:

1. Individual strengths:Each person on your team brings individual strengths to achieve your team's goals. Reach out to your team and thank each one of them for their unique contributions.

2. Contribution to your leadership journey: After all, without a team, you would not be a leader. Wherever you are in your career, your current team is influencing your leadership style and skills. Look for areas to grow and thank team members for their influence in your life when the opportunity exists.

3. Collaboration: From brainstorming to executing new processes, be thankful you have a team to solve complex problems with. As the old adage goes, two (or more) brains are better than one. Look for ways to invite others' points of view into the toughest challenge you are facing as a leader.

4. Community:Together is better. Working relationships with good boundaries equal a community. Look for simple ways to build community this month—like bagels and coffee in the morning to purposefully thank the team for completing a common goal—cast a vision for how that will empower the team to do greater things and be thankful.

5. Caring:Be thankful for the team members that put each other first to help each other find answers, solve problems, and achieve goals. Privately thank someone on your team for a selfless act. Be specific and encourage them to spread the same thankfulness to someone else on the team.

Expressions of thankfulness also help build and sustain connections in your relationships. Connection makes relationships more resilient— it provides the capability to deal with adversities and bounce back from them with strength and motivation.

Don't overthink ways to show your team thankfulness; a handwritten note is still a powerful way to say thank you.

Strong leaders are thankful for their teams. I encourage you to bring more thankfulness practices into your work habits every day, all year long.

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Rodney Cox serves as president at Ministry Insights International and has written and spoken extensively on the strengths movement as it relates to leadership and teams. His life's work has been dedicated to strengthening Christian relationships within the workplace, marriages, and families. Learn More »

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• Leadership alignment: realign your team for success with simple adjustments (by Christian Muntean)
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• How to build values by ringing the bell for what matters (by Scott Cochrane)

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