Positive Or Negative Reinforcement?

I am reading this post by Tom Foster on delivering either a positive or negative reinforcement to a member of the team.

In a nutshell he describes:

“You smiled. The immediate response to positive reinforcement is a smiling face. Many managers think they are delivering positive reinforcement to their team members, but I see scowls in return. Positive reinforcement invites a smile. If you don’t get a smile, you didn’t connect.” -TF

I attended a leadership training several months ago and I was surprised that the lecturer emphasized the need for conducting surveys amongst team members, to determine whether a leader is doing well because often, leaders are too arrogant and confident to think they are doing their job extremely well and turns out that members flank them in surveys.

The post of Tom Foster is a simple and immediate indication to determine whether the person approves your leadership style or not. I too found myself thinking of situations where managers would lecture me, and I came to realize that I don’t smile when I don’t approve of them and instead just nod my head in return.

Next time you talk to your subordinates, pay attention to their reaction as it says a lot about you.