The traditional advice for leaders to leave personal matters at the door might not be the most effective approach to fostering employee engagement and empowerment. Instead, recognizing leaders as multifaceted individuals with lives outside the workplace is crucial for supporting them in their demanding and often underappreciated roles.
Recent research from the University of Florida suggests that leaders who reflect on the gratitude they receive from their families experience a greater sense of prosocial impact—feeling that they’re making a positive difference in others’ lives. This heightened perception motivates them to exhibit more helpful and empowering behavior toward their employees in the workplace.
“Perceiving that you’ve made a difference in the lives of those you love satisfies basic psychological needs which then carry over into the office by motivating you to be more helpful and empowering toward your direct reports,” the researchers explain.
The power of gratitude
The secret to harnessing the potency of gratitude from family members lies in reflecting on and cherishing those moments of appreciation, as this extends and magnifies the impact.
Setting aside a few moments each morning to ponder and jot down instances when a family member expressed gratitude for something you did at home can serve as a powerful motivator for leaders. It can inspire them to be more attentive to their employees’ work-related requirements and to empower them to contribute their perspectives to significant decisions in the workplace.
“Our research suggests that positive events that happen at home don’t need to stay there,” the researchers explain. “Instead, they can follow leaders at work in ways that benefit their employees.”
When we feel appreciated
The researchers conducted surveys with over 300 leaders and 100 of their employees spanning diverse industries. Through three field experiments, leaders were tasked with reflecting on and writing about the gratitude they received at home before beginning their workday. On these same days, both leaders and their employees were surveyed about the leaders’ supportive and empowering actions in the workplace.
The findings remained consistent across all three studies: leaders who reflected on gratitude from home exhibited greater levels of helpfulness and empowerment towards their employees at work, a trend observed consistently by both leaders and their followers.
“Our work suggests that gratitude expressions at home may be beneficial not only for the recipient leaders, but also for their employees, who then experienced more help and empowerment from these leaders,” the researchers explain. “Therefore, family members showing appreciation for each other may not only benefit their relationship but also improve their loved ones’ work experiences.”
Reaping the benefits
The researchers suggest two straightforward steps for leaders to reap the rewards of gratitude reflection:
- Begin your day by reflecting on a past instance where you performed a kind gesture for a family member, and they expressed gratitude towards you for it.
- Take a moment to visualize yourself reliving that moment (as savoring it enhances its impact). In three to five sentences, outline what you did, how your family member responded in the situation, and your emotions upon receiving their appreciation.
“Gratitude has been found to have numerous benefits for recipients, but not much work has examined leaders as recipients of gratitude,” the authors conclude. “Our work shows that by creating opportunities for leaders to engage in such gratitude reflections, organizations can foster a positive and supportive work environment that encourages prosocial behavior and enhances overall leadership effectiveness.”
