I read this headline just the other day and it got me intrigued – praise less, why would we want to do that? I then went on to read further into the article and the authors definition answered my question.
“Encouragement is different from praise.
Praise is like fast food, there’s not a lot of nourishment in it.
Encouragement is like a healthy diet, it’s very nourishing.
Praise focuses more on results.
Encouragement focuses more on effort, improvement, contribution or enjoyment gained.”
Some examples of praise could include:
- you played really well
- you completed that task on time
- you did really well in that test
So how do you encourage?
- provide it when they least expect it
- acknowledge the smallest of things
- tell them when you notice an improvement
- keep the focus on the behaviour, not the person
- help them learn from mistakes
- challenge them to continue, give them self belief
- help them to persist, to not give up
To praise or to encourage, both provide feedback, the difference is in the understanding of the impact. The difference you can make to someone’s self esteem could be just in your choice of feedback. Remember one is fast food, one is a healthy diet!
Parts of this comment are taken from “Praise less, encourage more” article by Michael Grose, Sunday Herald Sun, April 11, 2010.
Sharon Kilmartin
Learning Facilitator
Insight International Consultancy
