Garage sales are stocked with gifts that were not Appropriate

In a recent article, I described garage sales as an inexpensive source of fun tokens to help convey your message of appreciation, while keeping in mind that it’s your words that mean the most to recipients.

In addition to being a potential treasure trove of items that could be used to help convey your message, garage sales also offer evidence that others have failed to find Appropriate gifts to celebrate birthdays and anniversaries or to recognize staff.

Whether purchased at a neighbour’s sale or from a retailer, it is vital that symbols of our gratitude used when recognizing staff are selected with the recipient in mind. Appropriate tokens of appreciation should reflect your knowledge of the individual—their interests, hobbies, non-work life, career plan, reading preferences, etc.

Related Article: 7 Questions to Ask to Recognize Staff Appropriately

When I think about garage sales, the image that pops to mind is of a collection of games in a faux leather case embossed with the logo of the organization that likely presented it to an employee as an award after five or 10 years of service. I willingly paid seven dollars for it at a garage sale.

It includes several games I enjoy or should learn—backgammon, chess, cribbage, dominos, checkers and two decks of playing cards that provide an infinite number of games.

The collection was perfect—for me!

But obviously not for the recipient who didn’t even remove the cellophane wrapping before adding the box to the garage sale table.

Plainly, the gift was not selected with the recipient in mind. The employer didn’t know this individual well enough to realize that a games collection would be of no interest.

In my first book, Thanks! GREAT Job!, I recalled a conversation with an acquaintance who unintentionally illustrated what happens when what is meant to convey a message of appreciation is not Appropriate. She showed me a set of glasses etched with her employer’s logo that she—and everyone other employee—had received to mark a milestone in the company’s development.

“I would really like to have more of these,” she told me. “They are really expensive glasses but most people don’t know that. I am sure that I’ll be able to buy more at garage sales next summer.”

It was yet another confirmation of the truth of “Guru of Thanks” Bob Nelson’s estimate that up to 90 per cent of the money being spent on recognition trinkets is wasted. Many of these items are destined for landfills or garage sales. 

I can’t escape this article unscathed. Years ago, I was part of a school district’s leadership that decided that everyone—teachers, support staff, custodians—who worked for the school system would appreciate receiving a baseball cap with the district logo.

Well, we were wrong. Some were not thrilled to receive a baseball cap to show they were part of the team.

Within 24 hours, at least one had been donated to a used clothing store and a friend took delight in reporting that a cap had been observed on the head of someone definitely not associated with the school system.

There is a common theme to these stories of recognition gone wrong. They demonstrate one of the 12 staff recognition practices to avoid that I included in my new book Thanks, Again!—believing that “one size fits all”

That’s not true for clothing and it’s not true for staff recognition. No two staff members are alike. Everyone has distinctive characteristics. Recognition that fits one person may not be a good match to a colleague’s recognition preference or reflect what’s important to them. Recognition that is Appropriate is more memorable than when everyone receives the same generic award. 

One-size-fits-all recognition doesn’t work.

Thanks, Again! will be available for purchase during its official launch on Tuesday evening, October 3 at 7:00 p.m. in the Second Cup Cafe, 8303 112 Street NW, Edmonton. You can also buy Thanks, Again! at Audreys Books, 10702 Jasper Avenue, Edmonton (and on their website) and online from Amazon, Indigo, and the FriesenPress Bookstore.

Garage Sales — a source for inexpensive tokens of appreciation

Limited budget for staff recognition? Searching for inexpensive tokens to convey your messages of appreciation? Look no further than neighbourhood garage sales.

As the refrain goes, “One person’s garbage is another person’s treasure.”

Shopping garage sales is a way to find inexpensive items to recognize staff for what they do. The treasures to be found at garage sales can become Appropriate ways to recognize staff.

Recognition that is Appropriate respects the recipients’ recognition preferences and reflects their interests.

Finding Appropriate tokens of appreciation at garage sales or elsewhere requires that you know staff well enough to recognize what will be an Appropriate match for them when you convey your message of appreciation.

As is true of any item employed when recognizing staff, garage sale treasures are just symbols that are used to support your message of gratitude. What really matters to recipients are the words you use to say thank you.

When presenting these recycled tokens of appreciation be upfront about the source. Don’t attempt to pass off items sourced from a garage sale table as new, even though some items you discover will never have been used.

Explain why you thought about your staff member when you saw the items and why you believe someone else’s discard may be something they will treasure because it relates to their interests.

Recently, I chanced upon a gigantic garage sale raising money for a local choir. As I went from table to table, I discovered items that would be perfect for people who are in my circle of family and friends.

You can do the same.

During my garage sale experience, I found the following items that I believe would be Appropriate because they relate to the interests of people in my world:

• A Harry Potter game for someone who is a great fan of the boy wizard.
• A collection of mystery stories for a mystery lover.
• A handmade tea pot for someone who enjoys nothing more than a good cup of tea to begin his day.
• A box set of Big Bang Theory DVDs for a fan of the series.
• A hardback copy of Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln by Doris Kearns Goodwin for a history buff
• A travel guide for the country someone dreams of visiting.
• A cookbook for the “resident chef” who is always searching for new recipes to try.
• Coffee cups for someone who volunteers at a seniors drop-in centre that is always short of cups for its clients.

What you purchase for a dollar or a bit more (or less) does not have to be presented right away. Set it aside until the moment is right—when it’s time to thank an individual for what they achieved or how they contributed.

The advantage of a delay is that if you are anxious for an opportunity to present this “perfect” token of your appreciation  you will be more alert for actions warranting recognition.

The next time you visit a garage sale, think about the people with whom you work. What will you see that will be Appropriate for some staff members? They will thank you and so will your staff recognition budget.