Download Kc Cultural Praise Vol 4
Drema Elleman
No one questions that all parents do, or should, consider their offspring special and their achievements worthy of praise. Traditionally, such praise was considered one part of the supportive parental environment, with the ultimate goal being to prepare children to successfully handle the full range of adult experiences. But a strange thing happened to what began as a broad-spectrum, family-centered responsibility designed to provide children with a wide variety of coping skills. Somewhere along the line, the responsibility for positive reinforcement fulfillment not only moved out of the family and into the public sector, it broadened both in scope and intensity, in addition to extending well beyond childhood.
In practical terms, however, what does this mean for veterinarians? For those 40 years old and older, it means recognizing that younger associates and employees may need a lot more praise than they themselves have either received or are used to dispensing. Needless to say, that may be difficult for some. Practice owner Robert Jaffe can barely find time to fulfill all his medical and administrative duties without adding the burden of dispensing routine obligatory praise for his 3 young associates and staff members.
As it turns out, no, not if you want to keep these employees. Unlike previous generations, those raised in the culture of praise need frequent assurance that they and their work are appreciated. If they do not receive it, regardless of the pay and benefits, they will leave. In the long run, making the effort to up the praise quotient will take less time and energy than hiring and breaking in a new employee.
Dr. Jaffe assumed his praise was the only praise that mattered to his employees, because he owns the practice. However, for those raised in the culture of praise, praise that comes only from the top might not be enough. If he praises his new associate, but his other associate does not, the new associate may take this very personally. In the worst scenario, the practice employs multiple praise-seekers, all seeking praise from those only interested in receiving it, not giving it to others.
Regardless what names and etiology the social and behavioral scientists assign to this shift in employee expectations, successfully addressing it boils down to a familiar concept: quality communication. Dr. Jaffe has a head start if his primary goal truly is to provide quality care for his patients and clients, because even the most praise-hungry employees may be willing to put their own needs on hold, at least temporarily, when there are animals and clients whose needs are greater. On the other hand, if his goal is a 25% increase in his gross income during the fiscal year, the employees might not be so understanding.
Notice how Dr. Jaffe does not define the problem and its solution and then present this as a fait accompli to his employees. This is a wise decision on his part, because his employees may not share his definition of the problem or even that such a problem exists. Even if they do, the more he involves them in the solution to the problem, the more committed they will be to its successful implementation. While always a good practice, this is particularly the case when part of the solution may involve the praise-seekers agreeing to do unto others in the praise realm as they expect others to do unto them, which may be a new concept to them.
The scheme was adopted by the European Commission at a time when the intensity and the number of attacks against cultural heritage have increased significantly, particularly in the Middle East and Africa.
Bokova took the example of her recent visit to Afghanistan to say that hard security measures were not enough, and that a sustainable peace process was possible only if young Afghans could learn their own history, and accept that their history represents many layers of culture. She praised the President of Afghanistan, Ashraf Ghani, who despite the difficult economic situation of the country, devoted funding for teaching young Afghans about the diversity of the country.
Bokova also stressed the importance of considering the destruction of cultural heritage as a war crime and expressed her satisfaction that a few days ago a Malian jihadist became the first person to face trial before the International Criminal Court, for attacks on the World Heritage site of Timbuktu. Reportedly, the jihadist has pleaded guilty.
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