Category: recognition

The Muny, St. Louis’ outdoor, professional theater has been a tradition for generations in the city, with many making it a ritual to attend each week during its season. The Muny has a wonderful tradition of providing free seats in the last nine rows of seating for its summer musical theater productions. This practice allows 1400 people to experience a professional, live performance without cost, but the distance from the stage results in more “hearing” than “seeing” of the production.

A foundation chose to honor a Muny regular, Patricia Wolf Gould, with a memorable gift in her honor. Each week, “free seat” patrons are randomly chosen and given seats much closer to the stage. The move enables them to be immersed in the production, rather than watching it from afar, and those who are “Patti’s Pick” are able to hear and see the show from a whole new perspective.

I love how personal this recognition is. It would have been easy for the foundation to endow a scholarship, make a contribution to the theater, or provide some other donation on her behalf but creating the seat upgrade program is a way to honor her legacy as well as her life.

Whether you are recognizing someone in large ways or small, work diligently to craft a tribute that specifically honors the person. Consider what is/was important to them, things they loved, areas where they gave their attention or unique ways that you can extend their influence. Special individuals merit personalized recognition, not a generic accolade.

As part of their sponsorship of an Indianapolis 500 car, HyVee grocery store had the actual vehicle on display. It’s the first time I had seen an official race car up close and was surprised by how incredibly small it is. The seat looks like it would only hold a small child instead of a full-grown adult. I don’t know how they get in!

But what they do manage to fit in is sponsorship announcements. Every square inch of that vehicle is covered with advertisements of the various sponsors — everyone from HyVee to Mountain Dew Zero, Cheetos, Wahlburgers, and more. I am sure there were intricate legal maneuverings to determine the font size and placement of every letter of type on that car, but you certainly know who is the driving force behind it.

Other organizations could follow their lead and likely do a better job of proclaiming and recognizing their sponsors. You certainly don’t have to be as garish and ostentatious as Indy but there may be more public ways of acknowledging those who are powering your organization’s programs and services beyond just a simple line in your annual report. Not every donor wants its name emblazoned on your materials but consider whether there is an appropriate external way for you to show who is providing your fuel.

At a dedication ceremony for a new Veterans’ Memorial, the speaker reminded us of the importance of recognition that allows us to touch it, providing us with the opportunity to feel closer to those being remembered. Touch is an important aspect of all memory: we take photographs and buy souvenirs from vacations, bring home seashells from our walk on the beach, keep ticket stubs or pressed flowers from significant dates, and have boxes of crayon-filled artwork to remind us of childhood. Memories in our minds are enhanced by a physical trigger.

But those tactile accompaniments often mean little without the story that ascribes its meaning. The same is true for artwork. The sculpture at the Veterans’ Memorial means less if you do not know the significance behind it. Entitled “Skyward,” it gives visitors a view of the sky, the last thing hometown hero Chaplain Aloysius Schmitt saw while pushing sailors to safety through a porthole in a damaged ship in Pearl Harbor before perishing himself. Standing inside the sculpture and looking upward creates much more emotion than just thinking of the tragic scenario.

It’s nice to give people verbal kudos and pats on the back but remember the value of adding something lasting that you can touch. Touch plus story equals a powerful combination of recognition.

Speaker: CAPT Daniel L. Mode, Fleet Chaplain, SEVENTHFLT

If you look at these two pins they look identical unless you squint and look closely at the teeny-tiny number at the bottom. The problem is that number should be the whole point of the pin: one represents 3 gallons of blood donations (24 pints) while the other represents 14 gallons (112 pints). The sameness belies the vast differences in what they purport to recognize.

Consider, too, whether a pin is an appropriate recognition at all. The Red Cross has been handing out these same pins for decades but they serve little useful purpose. Why not provide a car decal with the emphasis on the number or something more visible to allow the donor to share pride in their accomplishment?

The Red Cross missed the mark by making their recognition about them (the red cross in the middle) instead of about the donor (the number more prominent). Take a critical look at what you share and ask whether it provides real value to the recipient or it’s just something you do.

Few decisions are more sensitive and cause greater emotion than how to do a memorial. It is a delicate topic on a personal level but when you’re planning a public memorial the scope and scale escalate every decision.

People in Las Vegas are experiencing this first-hand as they try to finalize plans for a memorial for lives lost at the Route 91 Harvest Music Festival in 2017. One of the key decisions is where to locate the tribute. While it may seem obvious that the memorial is at the site of the shooting, others feel that returning to that location would be too traumatic for the survivors. Another key point of debate is what names to inscribed in the remembrance: should it be the 58 who lost their lives there or should the two who died afterward be included as well? There are hundreds of stakeholders and an equal amount of passions and opinions to navigate.

While you may not be responsible for a project of this nature, it is likely that you will be involved in some type of tribute to those who have passed. It may be recognizing a colleague who died, a community member who suddenly or tragically lost their life, or even publishing a list of those who were lost this year. Keep in mind that each of the people you are memorializing leaves behind loved ones who are very much alive – and very attuned to each nuance of every decision you make. Remember to allow others to help shape how you remember others.

With so many events moving to an online format, you may be struggling to find a way to make the occasion special. While being remote has its disadvantages, it also opens up new opportunities for creative recognition.

One such way is with cameo.com. Various entertainers are available to record personalized messages that can be incorporated into Zoom-type calls. These have been used to present the top awards at banquets, part of showers or wedding celebrations, at virtual graduations, for appreciation or really for any occasion. You could have Bret Favre, Mandy Moore, Dennis Rodman or Chef Rick Bayless as a guest for your next big event, or choose from one of 30,000 others in categories such as Game of Thrones, reality TV stars, comedians, impersonators, queers or musicians to target the celebrity to your audience.

It’s harder to “wow” participants online, but Cameo might provide a new twist that allows you to infuse some personality into your event. Whether you use them or one of the other similar services out there, don’t just try to replicate in-person via the online format. Take advantage of new modalities to create unexpected memories.

In baseball, the 3000 hit club represents an elite group of players who have amassed that number of hits during the regular season. Out of nearly 20,000 players over the history of the game, only 32 men have achieved this milestone.

Of course, the number 3000 was on my mind as I reached that milestone myself with this dot. I don’t think there is a 3000 club for blog writers, but maybe there should be! And maybe you need to create an equivalent “club” in your organization – a recognition to mark the accomplishments of an exclusive few who have achieved at a level that sets them apart.

Having a criterion that indicates exceptional performance is worthy not only of the recognition it affords to those who attain it but just the mere act of codifying your benchmark helps communicate your values to others in the organization. Baseball considers 3000 hits as “the greatest measure of superior bat handling,” something to which all players should ascribe. What would be the legendary yardstick for your employees?