A TRUE gift begins with being genuine. 

A spontaneous high five in the hallway. An unannounced pat on the back. Any unrehearsed, authentic gesture of approval and of encouragement. These are all great examples of offering a TRUE gift in the workplace.

But there’s more to a delivering a TRUE gift than one's genuineness. 

The book “Gung Ho”  delves deeply into the three elements of Datamax Principle #16 (Be GUNG HO!!). Spirit of the Squirrel represents worthwhile work, while the Way of the Beaver represents being in control of achieving the goal.

But the clincher? It's the Gift of the Goose – cheering each other on. The authors write that while the Spirit of the Squirrel and the Way of the Beaver provide the spark, the Gift of the Goose is like throwing gasoline on the spark.

“It’s how you make a mission come alive,” the book says. “… The driving force behind people as they pursue a true mission is a reason for doing the work. A need to be fulfilled.”

A need to be congratulated ...encouraged ... cheered on.

It’s in the spirit of cheering each other on that our shared mission of Creating Raving Fans comes alive.

In “Gung Ho,” the narrator learns the three main principles by observing nature. So as she stands in a marsh, eager to learn the true “Gift of the Goose,” she watches geese fly overhead, honking ceaselessly as a means to cheer each other on.  Workers providing encouragement & enthusiastically cheering one another is, in fact, the “Gift of the Goose: ” the act of letting each other know how great they are. And it is not just management who needs to do the cheering, fellow workers need to cheer each other on as well.

But after a few minutes, she questions the validity of ceaseless cheering and encouragement.

“If you’re constantly congratulating people, doesn’t it become false?”

The response? “Not as long as it’s TRUE congratulations, it doesn’t.”

So what is a TRUE Gift? It must be: 

T imely - Don't delay a congratulatory message!

R esponsive - Respond positively anytime you see a teammate succeed!

U nconditional - No strings attached!

E nthusiastic - Go full Gung Ho in your praise!

Further Qualifications for a TRUE Congratulations:

1. Congratulations are affirmations that who people are and what they do matter, and that they are making a valuable contribution toward achieving a shared mission.

2. There are two types of congratulations: Active and passive.

3. Telling people what a great job they’ve done or presenting an award is an active congratulations.

4. Passive congratulations are such things as stepping aside and letting a team member go forward with a tricky, complicated, and important project, without exercising some sort of control or even offering advice.

5. And, finally, you can't overdo TRUE congratulations. 

Remember, that simple, impromptu high five?

According to the American Psychological Association, tactile communication, such as the high five, promotes cooperation between people, communicates distinct emotions, soothes in times of stress, and is used to make inferences of warmth and trust.

They're free. They're spontaneous. And they really work! It doesn't have to be a high five, of course. But it should always be TRUE!