It will be 10 years ago this January that I invited our team members in a Welcome to 2015 letter to make a “Great Impression!” Not only was the letter on each employee’s desk when they arrived back after the holidays but also balloons and flowers to support my mission.
The letter opened with a question: Want to be impressive? Make a Great Impression. It went on to say: It’s as important to make a Great Impression on a fellow employee as it is to make a Great Impression on a client or vendor. At the end of the day, if you are the person who makes a Great Impression, you feel great! Ask yourself in the morning, “What kind of impression am I going to make on everyone I meet, talk to, and deal with, everyone who walks by me?”
There was a challenge to each employee as well for that first month in 2015: I would like everyone to take 5 minutes each morning to speak with someone in the office you normally would not have contact with. How? Start with saying “Hello!” That interaction became the foundation for one of our current Core Values: Create a Positive Environment – take action in every situation to have a positive attitude.
Fast forward to this past Monday and our monthly kickoff get-together with all the employees. One of the highlights of this time is called ‘Shout Outs’ where an employee can single out a co-worker for outstanding work, or just being a good person. One of our newest team members, Helen Abele, had her name called three times with a Shout Out. While she was not there to receive the recognition, for a newbie, it was impressive.
Later that same day, we received word that Helen had passed away in her sleep at the age of 24.
On her ‘Welcome New Employee’ profile, Helen had written how much she enjoyed Christmas with her family and playing Dirty Santa. Her biggest fear was ‘paper cuts’ and for a young lady who had earlier undergone heart surgery, it says a lot about her personality – one department head described her as ‘a rising star just filled with electricity.’ Even more overwhelming was hearing her parents say how much Helen enjoyed being with us.
I share this as we enter the holidays to remind all of us how important it is to realize there are few certainties in life. In times like this, we are told to hug our loved ones, and I assure you my family is going to be hugged…and a few close friends…hope you do the same.
In your comings and goings – and it’s not a challenge – this is your invitation to feel great…Say Hello!
For the Holidays…For Helen.