We are entering a reflective time of year. This time of year, many of us think of the people in our lives who we are most grateful for, but do you ever include your professional contacts and colleagues in that gratitude?

Do you realize how much time you spend at work? If you add up all the extra hours Americans work each week, it comprises an extra four weeks of work crammed into each year, compared to many of our European counterparts. Let’s face it. We work hard, and spend many of our best hours each day interacting with our professional contacts and colleagues.

Did you know that gratitude can build your business? How do you feel about making sales calls and general business calls to strengthen relationships with your manager, colleagues, clients, or potential clients? If you are like most people, it can be an uncomfortable experience.

Here is how to get started. At EDSI, we would like to everyone in our community to  give this a try, and here’s how: Start making gratitude calls. Who deserves your gratitude? Think over this past year, and consider who has impacted your business and professional life. Maybe it is a vendor, or even a potential client that gave you some helpful criticism, which in turn polished your services for the next client. Big deals that were made? Sure, contact those key stakeholders. But don’t forget the short-term partnerships that popped up at work to resolve a particular problem or get a product to market.

Sandra Yancey, the phenomenally successful entrepreneur who began eWomen Network says that behind her company’s motto “Give first, share always” is a sense of gratitude. With this attitude backed by actionable steps, your professional presence, personal effectivenes, and  your business will grow.

The meaning behind the message. When you intentionally show gratitude, free of any expectation, your sincere desire to work in service of others can’t help but shine through. If you approach everything you do with a sense of service, your business grows.

So what do you say? Some people spend the day before Thanksgiving making gratitude calls. Between a box of generic chocolates at Christmas and a sincere gratitude call at Thanksgiving, which do you think people will really remember? That’s right. The gratitude call.

Another powerful gratitude habit lies in thank you cards. Buy a box of thank you cards, and use every one of them within the next two weeks. If you send out 10 cards a week, your business is bound to grow this year.

If you haven’t already received a copy of our latest infographic, click here to download one. We want everyone to have their own copy, as a quick reminder of what skills are critical to our personal and professional development, and the developmen of our teams. Most of all, we are grateful that you are part of the community!

At EDSI, we have been resolving employee development, leadership, generational, professional presence, and personal effectiveness issues for over 30 years. Contact us to learn how we can help increase productivity and profits in your organization.

800-282-3374 www.employeedevelopmentsystems.com