The Praise File

Today I created a “praise file.”

I don’t know who told me this idea, but I love it. I think it is such a wonderful way to keep perspective when things are rough.

Works like this: keep an archived file of emails where people have given you positive feedback, praise, or congrats.

I suppose it’s applicable to any area of your life, but I was originally told (by whom? by whom?) of a praise file in regards to work. While working in SF in 2006, I hit a rough patch with work (and life), and was severely lacking confidence in my “job skills” (and about every other kind of “skill”, might I add) — so much so, that I couldn’t remember ever having done one bit of quality work.

“I’m a fraud! I’m in over my head! I’m going to disappoint them! Why did they ever hire me?!”

Etc., etc.

So, when you get negative criticism (or, worse, reamed up the a**) — get out your praise file. If you’re under major-deadline-putting-out-a-fire-this-is-job-critical kind of stress– pull out the praise file. If you start to hate your job but feel like you don’t deserve to leave, because you’ve got no skills and unworthy of satisfying employment — out comes the praise file.

Collect anything and everything (so I was told by mystery-person) that can serve as a reminder that you do good work.  Here’s some examples of what’s in my praise file:

• “By the way – I LOVE what you wrote and I think we finally have got it”
• “Nice job, Shannon. You’re a rock star”
• “I just wanted to say a HUGE thank you to yourself and Shannon!! The high level of professionalism is very clear to see here, and these are fantastic options that we couldn’t have come up with in a year of trying!”
• “So happy you’re on this and on board. I can’t say that enough.”
• “Nice job, btw.”

It’s not about gloating over marvelous you are, or even using it as some kind of cheap tactic to pretend you are important and valuable, but rather — evidence to help you remember that you already are. It’s amazing how powerful something even as simple as “nice work” can be.

It’s helping to remind me that, as I on-board at my new job (and feeling incompetent half the time): I’m not an idiot, I do good work — and gosh, darn it: people like me.

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