A Free, Easy Way to Make Workplace Morale Explode

Running a company isn’t easy. You have to think about your product/service, your finances, your future plan, and about 500 other things -- and you can’t drop the ball on any of it. One of the toughest parts is managing your employees and ensuring that they want to stay working with you.

Everyone’s had a bad boss or a bad job, so we all know what it feels like when you aren’t excited to go to work or you groan when you’re called into someone’s office. Aside from the work itself, the mood and morale in the workplace has a serious effect on productivity and happiness all around -- and that manifests itself in both dollars and stress levels.

But there’s a free, easy aspect to management that can transform the mood of a workplace in short order: spreading good news. And believe it or not, science backs it up.

Think about your life. There’s someone who you call every time something amazing happens. It might be a parent or sibling, your best friend, or your significant other -- but there’s at least one person who you’re excited to call and talk to whenever you have great news. It makes you feel good, and they like to hear about your successes, too. And don’t you love it when you’re the one who gets a call like that?

Employees rarely get good news spoken directly to them. Most of the time they’re assigned a task, given its parameters, and either praised or criticized once it’s over. When they do hear good news, it’s usually as part of a group. Everyone gets it; it isn’t unique to them.

It’s a shame, too, because good news is contagious. A study out of the University of Pennsylvania found that you really can increase the happiness of those around you. All you have to do is spread the good word. Research elsewhere has backed this up; a new study from Gonzaga University found that couples who share good news with each other sleep better and improve their health.

It really is that easy, and the news doesn’t even have to be that magnificent. It just has to be positive.

Communication is critical to a meaningful employer/employee relationship, so walk the floor. Over the course of two weeks, go talk to everyone who works with you (and if your company is so large that it’s impossible, do what you can and have your managers talk to their people). Check in. Listen. Ask what’s up. Just have a normal conversation.

… and make sure you drop some good news. If it’s about them or relevant to them, that’s amazing. But even if it’s not, your positivity will help set the tone for their day, their mindset, and how they view the workplace.

Maybe you say how happy a client is that her order was fulfilled on time. Maybe you relay that you found a way to save the company some money and that will shore up the firm’s health or pave the way for an epic Holiday party. Maybe you say how great you feel because the sun’s out or the leaves are changing or you got 11 McNuggets in your value meal instead of 10.

Honestly, it doesn’t really matter -- just throw throw your people some good news, do it in a personal conversation, and do it as often as possible.

You can nail benefits administration, sales growth, or any number of core aspects of your business, but you still need to create a workplace people want to come to and stay at. Spreading good news can help make that happen by improving moods (and in a small way, health), reducing turnover, and boosting productivity. It’ll take away some of your stress, too.

Everyone feels better, you all get more done, and the bottom line improves. It’s not a tough sell.

So, what good news are you going to share with your employees today?