On the eve of Thanksgiving I wanted to share some of my favorite articles on gratitude and the impact it can have on culture.

How to Cultivate Gratitude, Compassion, and Pride on Your Team

I love this article and this research because it focuses on how to build grit on your team. I think grit is one of the most valuable traits in an employee and teammate. This article goes into how having grace with team members can promote more patience and perseverance and how expressing gratitude plays an important role.

“Work from my lab, for example, shows that people induced to feel grateful show double the patience when it comes to financial rewards. They’re twice as willing to forgo an immediate smaller profit so that they can invest it for a longer-term gain. In a similar vein, people made to feel pride or compassion are willing to persevere more than 30% longer on challenging tasks compared to those feeling other positive emotions, such as happiness, precisely because pride and compassion induce them to place greater value on future rewards.”

Being a good boss isn’t easy—here’s how to get better

While not just about gratitude, this article touches on how to become a better manager through four simple “human practices”. I think all the advice in this short article is valuable but I like how it highlights the importance of authenticity when expressing gratitude.

“Celebrating small achievements helps people face larger challenges and sets up a positive dynamic where everyone wants to do better. But don’t overdo it. People can tell when their bosses and senior leaders are just following a script without truly meaning what they say. Hone the ability to feel genuine thankfulness and express it in a heartfelt way.”

The Science Of Gratitude: How Thankfulness Impacts Our Brains And Business

In a results oriented culture it can be difficult to build in strong recognition loops for employees. This article is a good reminder to me that recognition is critical to team success, but also that expressing gratitude can be a good way to ensure employees feel recognized.

“Gratitude is closely linked to employee recognition—and there is an overwhelming amount of research that shows how recognizing employees leads to positive outcomes.”

Final Thoughts

Practicing gratitude and building it into team culture have clear benefits. I hope this was a reminder to be thankful. Have a great Thanksgiving for those in the USA.