Positivity: Accolades

Everybody likes to get accolades.

Receiving a reward for a job well done certainly generates a lot of positivity.

This does not need to be a grand thing, sometimes it takes nothing more than being told “thank you”.

Accolades are something that everyone appreciates. Even when we do the things we do because it’s simply what we do, being rewarded in some fashion makes it extra special.

As the social creatures that we are, we seek the recognition of our peers, our colleagues, our friends and our family. It doesn’t need to be public, it doesn’t need to be a humongous gesture of some sort – we just are made to feel good when we receive some sort of accolade.

We all experience times when we feel unappreciated, when we feel that our opinions and our work are not properly valued. As such we can appreciate not only when we receive accolades, but when we see our friends rewarded for something they have done.

As much as any of us individually can enjoy accolades, there is something to be said for the joy we can experience when they come to our friends and loved ones. Seeing the people we care about receive a reward of some sort can build an impressive amount of positivity for not only the rewarded, since we can take joy in their happiness.

Certainly there are times we see people rewarded for things we may not agree with. Still, rather than feeling bitter or spiteful we should do our best to share in the positivity the accolade will generate.

Knowing how being rewarded feels to us, we should practice more freely giving accolades. It need not be something large and showy, it can be as simple as expressing gratitude. It can be very surprising how much positivity can be generated by both giving and receiving accolades. Saying “well done” or “congrats” or even “thank you” feels as good as hearing them.

Finding positivity is not hard, it just requires action. Knowing that we like to receive accolades in recognition of a thing we have done or are doing, we should take as much joy in giving them as receiving them. Receiving accolades feels good and generates a sense of empowerment, while giving accolades allows us to further empower ourselves. When we feel empowered, we often spread that feeling to others around us, and as such can build more positive feelings. We can use the positive feelings this generates to dissolve negative feelings. When we take away negative feelings, we open up space to let in positive feelings, and that is something we can be grateful for. Gratitude leads to happiness. Happiness is the ultimate positive attitude. Positive attitude begets positive energy, and that is always a good thing.

This is the seventy-fifth entry of my Positivity series.  It is my hope these weekly messages might help spread positive energies for everyone.  Feel free to share, re-blog and spread the positivity.