You know, it's that 🦃 time of year when everyone writes a professional gratitude post. Sometimes they come across as trite. It's like proclaiming love on Valentine's Day... Something that should be expressed throughout the year. That being said, I asked Claude for five ways people could better express gratitude about work. Below find the suggestions. Me, I am grateful to be here, to be given the opportunity to help others embrace new technologies and tools in this ever-evolving AI game. It is through helping others that I feel most fulfilled. For that, I am grateful today, tomorrow and next month, too. :) OK, Claude's suggestions are: 1) Write about specific moments rather than general platitudes. Instead of "I'm thankful for my amazing team," share something like "I'm grateful for how Sarah stayed late to help me prepare for the client presentation when my computer crashed last month." 2) Focus on personal growth and lessons learned. Share how colleagues or experiences challenged your assumptions or helped you develop new skills. For example: "This year taught me that vulnerability can be a leadership strength, thanks to my mentor James who showed me how sharing our challenges brings the team closer." 3) Highlight the unsung heroes. Look beyond executives and direct supervisors to recognize people whose behind-the-scenes work makes a difference, like the IT support person who always responds quickly or the office manager who remembers everyone's dietary restrictions at team lunches. 4) Connect gratitude to concrete impact. Rather than just thanking clients, explain how their trust enabled you to create something meaningful: "Thanks to our partnership with XYZ Corp, we were able to develop a program that has helped 100 students access STEM education." 5) Make it forward-looking. End with how you plan to pay the gratitude forward or build on what you've learned. For instance: "Inspired by the mentorship I've received, I'm committed to spending more time guiding junior colleagues in the coming year."
Aha! There should be no hyphen between the words “forward” and “looking” in the final bullet point. I knew AI was useless! Interesting note, I dictated that with my phone and Siri auto corrected “I knew AI was useless to “I knew I was useless” Passive aggressive.
The last one is the key... action is what takes it from oneself to making a difference in our world.
Building tools to bring humanity back together again.
4moGeoff Livingston, love these suggestions, especially the idea of focusing on specific moments. It’s easy to say, ‘I’m grateful for my team,’ but the real value comes from recognizing the little moments that make a difference. For example, I’m grateful for the trust my team places in me to guide them through complex projects—those moments of collaboration always make the hard work feel worth it.