Humans crave appreciation. It goads them on. Everyone wants to feel appreciated.

For
many, appreciation is just saying thank you. But appreciation only begins with saying thanks.
True appreciation is not only recognizing someone's excellent efforts and contribution. The
term actually means "to recognize, value, acknowledge and enjoy" a person's good qualities
or effort. It means showing respect and understanding as well as gratitude. Business thrives
on appreciation. So do relationships. Everything you take for granted is taken away from you
at some stage or the other.

Learning how to show appreciation to others is one of the highest emotional states you can
experience. Many people find that it requires great diligence to cultivate a persistent
attitude of appreciation. That’s because we’ve been culturally conditioned to focus on what
is not done, rather than appreciation for what we’ve already received and achieved.
Appreciation means keeping one’s ego aside. It means showing a large heart. The top
obstacles that stop us from appreciating someone are Ego, Pride, Jealousy and Resentment.
We can never appreciate someone else if we are filled with these negative emotions. It’s
important to accept and face the fact that there will be people better or worse than us in
terms of looks, physique, intellect, talent, wealth, etc. Accept that and appreciate them
rather than pulling the other person down. We need to send the right message to our
younger generation. No matter who is at the top position, we can always find things to
appreciate about others. And this becomes even more easier when we crush our egos,
pride, pre conceived ideas and jealousy.

When you appreciate someone, don’t expect something back. Appreciate from your heart
without any expectations and that’s how you enjoy its fruits. It all comes back automatically.
The more you appreciate someone, the more they will do for you. Appreciate your partner
for cooking a sumptuous meal or your spouse for working hard and providing for the family
or an employee for giving time and their ideas to your work. Guess what happens? They
only want to do it more and more for you. That’s the beauty of appreciation.

Although recognition and appreciation often get talked about from only the recipient’s
viewpoint, there are plenty of powerful benefits to the giver as well. Give it a try. You might
just inspire someone to greatness.

Your mindset changes. It’s not natural for many of us to actively look for the great work,
brilliant ideas, and extra effort given by our co-workers and family. That’s probably due to
the fact that we’re simply focused on looking out for ourselves and from our point of view.
But when you change your mindset to look for the good instead of the bad in the people
around you, you begin to notice just how fantastic they are.

Your mood improves. Psychologists have long touted how our mood and daily outlooks
change when we focus on positive things rather than negative. Imagine the impact using
positive words to appreciate another person could have on your mood and theirs too.

You build trust in relationships. Even the neuroscientists are proving that recognition builds
trust. Appreciation has the largest effect on trust when it occurs immediately after a goal
has been met. It is a catalyst to further and genuine effort made.
It doesn’t cost us a single cent to appreciate, still it’s so powerful in making you as well as
others feel and heal better. Something as simple as appreciation can change not just your
life but others around you as well. So many people are depressed, think suicidal thoughts,
feel down; go and genuinely appreciate their presence and effort.