“There are two things people want more than sex and money -- recognition and praise.” --Mary Kay Ash
Children are a great example of the human need to get praise and recognition. How many times a day do I hear: “Look Mommy, look what I can do, look at what I did”. As a parent, I freely give my children the praise they ask for. I remember once being a child myself, wanting to show my parents and any adult who would give me the time of day, my multiple talents, impatiently awaiting for their praises.
Through time though, we learn not to ask for it anymore. We are taught social standards that value humbleness, discretion and modesty as being basic desirable qualities. That learned behaviour does not imply in any way that we don’t need recognition anymore. In his Hierarchy of Needs, Maslow mentions recognition as being an essential need. Aristotle calls it honour and also deems it as being important for our wellbeing.
Not everyone equally needs recognition. For some people, although they might enjoy the attention, it might not be essential. Others might need it too much because of a lack of self-esteem.
If I look at my own friends and family members, I can observe that most of them appreciate and recognition and praise from others. We are social beings and our self-image is, if not dependent upon, at least influenced by the image people have of us. In businesses, time and money is increasingly spent on finding ways to recognize employees’ efforts, because it helps improve productivity and motivation.
Let’s face it, when it comes to praise and recognition, we are all a little bit like children, wishing we could say: “Look Mommy” and get the encouragement necessary to fuel our motivation. It doesn’t mean we all suffer from low self-esteem. It is just a manifestation of the fact that we live in a society and that we need to feel appreciated for our active and dedicated contribution.
On New Year’s Eve, my friend and colleague John left me a message saying: Happy New Year… I want you to know I think you’re doing a great job! It was such a simple sentence, but it did make me feel good.
And what about you? Do you feel you need praise and recognition?
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