The great management guru, Ken Blanchard, has made the term “Whale Done” famous from his now iconic Whale Done video and book. In the film, he emphasizes the idea that we should “catch” people doing something right in the workplace. This positive approach of focusing on the good things people do rather than the bad leads to a positive upbeat workplace where employees feel good about what they are doing and are more likely to be motivated to achieve even better results. Blanchard uses the term because of the famous leadership model that Sea World uses to train Whales. They are always positive, focusing on the moments when the Whales do something right. This training has led to miraculous results.

Blanchard isn’t making a condescending statement about employees. He understands that people aren’t Whales and that the relationships with human beings are a million times more complex, however the comparison makes a valid point. There are far too many managers who are caught up with the negative. They forget that people need positive reinforcement to achieve.

This isn’t to say that mistakes don’t need to be corrected. Certainly mistakes and behaviors that are affecting the business in a negative way need to be addressed. There is just a better way to do it. Find the positive whenever possible and when a negative happens, put a positive spin on it.

Every manager could make a positive change in their staff’s productivity today by adopting this approach:

  1. Make it a habit to find something positive to complement every employee you manage on, every week.
  2. If there is something negative that needs to be addressed, do it in private and make sure that the employee knows that this negative will be used as a learning experience and then emphasize positives that you have recognized.

Almost universally managers will find that their staff is more productive and makes fewer mistakes. It is a natural human need to be accepted and respected. Positive reinforcement helps with both of these needs. Workplaces that are run on negative energy and fear have more turnover and employee dissatisfaction. When employees feel these negative emotions they are far less likely to work at their highest capacity. Human beings are certainly not Whales, but they have the same needs in terms of positive reinforcement. Your employees are your most valuable asset – give them the support they need with positive reinforcement.