When I was growing up, my parents had a great way of making us children feel special on otherwise mundane days. They would surprise us with “un-birthday” presents.
Yes, you read that right. These un-birthday moments would come out of the blue and probably were exciting as much for the spontaneity as they were for whatever object our parents decided to bestow on us.
Some things from childhood just stick with you. And this one did for me.
Years later, we put the same concept into play at Mustang Engineering, the company I helped found where we promoted a people-first culture. We wanted our company to be a big happy family, so our corporate version of the un-birthday presents my parents gave me was just one more way to make that happen.
Here’s how we did it: We branded our Mustang name and horse logo on all sorts of useful objects that we gave to our people. There were T-shirts, hats, key chains, eyeglass cases, coffee mugs, drink holders and anything else we could think of that would help people feel they were appreciated and part of a great team.
Like the un-birthday presents of my childhood, we didn’t give out the merchandise only on special occasions or only to certain people. Instead, employees would just arrive at work on a random day and there it would be on their desk. A nice moment. An unexpected moment.
A small thing?
Perhaps. But sometimes small things can bring your company big rewards. This was an easy way to keep people energized and talking positively about their team. In fact, Mustangers (as we called everyone on our team) still maintain a Facebook page that shows off some of this company swag they collected over the years.
Beyond the spontaneity of it all, I think the Mustang variation on my parents’ old birthday gifts was successful because people long to be part of something special. It’s why sports fans buy jerseys, hats, and blankets with logos from their favorite team. It’s why people put bumper stickers on their cars to promote a favorite cause.
For whatever reason, though, this sense of belonging rarely happens where people work, which is odd when you think about it because we spend so much time on the job. Meet someone at a cocktail party and they are more likely to ask you where you work than what basketball team you follow. Yet, many companies have no spirit of teamwork at all. That’s bad for the employee. It’s also bad for the company.
Think about it. If you don’t like your co-workers and you don’t enjoy working with them, then you start not liking your job. Soon, that dislike is reflected in your effort, and you're just counting the days until you can move on to another company or retire.
It’s the opposite if you feel passionate about your team and your workplace. You look forward to seeing your co-workers. You’re inspired to give your best effort. The company benefits as a result.
Yes, all that swag we gave away was a small thing.