ALT-2 Ways of saying thanks to Office Colleagues
Ways of saying thanks to office colleagues
If you work in an office with nice coworkers who help you out, you are in the happy position of looking how to say thank you to them. Here are some ideas and things to consider.
Consider what you are saying thank you for
If a co-worker helps you meet a deadline that if missed would have gotten you fired, that deserves a big thank you. If someone simply told you your car lights were on and saved you getting a boost, that’s a different level of thank you. You need to find the appropriate level of showing your appreciation for the level of help they gave you. Helping you not miss an important meeting is one thing, but if they bake cookies for the office do you really need anything more than a simple verbal thank you?
Consider the person – how will they take a thank you
Some people do not want a thank you, and you will make them feel uncomfortable or even bad if you force one on them. These people do kind deeds and don’t expect any rewards for it. In some cases people feel if they accept a reward for being kind and helpful it cheapens or demeans their actions. If your office colleague is one of these people you will have to be sneaky or just find ways to help them in return over time.
Ideas on how to say thank you
For the person who won’t accept anything, you have to be alert and creative. You can bake them cookies, cupcakes, or provide a home made veggie tray. People love to eat and this will be appreciated. Also you can give that person first chance at the food, and afterwards let the rest of the office in. That will make you everyone’s best friend for a while. But beware of any office allergies before doing this.
Taking someone out for lunch is often a very nice thank you. Some people never seem to leave their desk during the day. But when they are invited out for lunch, they will really enjoy the break and the bonding time with you. As with the home made food, people love food in general and the offer of a free meal is hard to turn down. Best of all it may turn into an alternating arrangement where first one of you and then the other pays for the meals that day. That is a great arrangement because you can both look forward to that experience.
Having something delivered to the person at work requires that you know that person fairly well. If they embarrass easily or jump to the wrong ideas, getting them flowers or chocolates may not be the best idea. You will come off as a secret admirer or worse a potential stalker! However, if you do have romantic feelings this could be the ideal way to bring up the subject – these talks always go better over some pretty flowers or candy.
Something that nobody wants to do is stay late to finish work. If you are supposed to go home at 5pm, you want to be out the door at that time to enjoy the rest of your life. A good way to say thank you is to offer to help a co-worker with their work so they can leave on time, or at least earlier than they would otherwise. It shows you are considerate and care. Even just helping clean up the room after a big meeting will be greatly appreciated.
In the end the main rules to follow are match the size of the thank you to the size of the reason for the thank you, and make sure you know the person you are thanking well enough to choose the proper type of thank past. Don’t forget to say those two simple words that show your gratitude because often people don’t hear them enough Thank you.
