Melissa Miller is the owner of Gratitude Investors, a company focused on increasing employee retention, engagement, and performance for individuals and companies by implementing gratitude and appreciation programs. Melissa’s educational background makes her uniquely qualified to work with businesses looking to take their recognition programs to the next level. With B.A. degrees in Economics and Psychology from Centre College, Melissa believes investing in employees creates the largest returns.
what is Gratitude Investors all about?
We have created gratitude-based appreciation programs for the workplace. Many companies have outdated recognition programs that underperform. We use science-based research and positive psychology to increase employee retention, productivity, and performance for leaders and corporations. A Gallup poll in 2012 found that 87% of employees in the world are disengaged. More than 50% of employees intend to search for a new job because they felt underappreciated and undervalued. We want to change that. As we like to say, we are experts in happiness dividends. Our program creates happier employees and a better place to work, whether in person or remotely.
How does gratitude create employee engagement?
Our most basic need, after safety, is to be appreciated. Yet, over 65% of employees last year said they received no recognition in the workplace. When people don’t feel appreciated, we know this leads to increased employee turnover, which directly affects a company’s bottom line. By using gratitude throughout your organization, you can foster employee engagement and loyalty. Workers are more productive, support the company’s vision, and outperform their less-engaged peers. Our program helps businesses appreciate their greatest assets throughout their daily operations.
Tell us a little bit about your background and how you started your company?
My childhood was spent on a family farm in Danville, Kentucky. I was blessed with a big extended family that loved sports and gathered at my grandparents’ house every Sunday for lunch. I had uncles who loved playing practical jokes and aunts who were incredible inspirations. I learned everything from the rules of football to my love of books from my family. I also witnessed gratitude in action. A few years ago, my aunts and I created The 180° Letters, a letter-writing kit to make sharing gratitude simple. I loved working in gratitude and was drawn to the business sector from my professional life and education. I wanted to see what companies could do to foster happier people.
What is your favorite quote?
“Great things never came from comfort zones.”
When I came across this quote, I realized that is exactly what I had been doing in my life. Playing it safe and staying small seemed like the adult, “smart” thing to do because fear holds us in our comfort zones. I knew the life I wanted to have, but to get there would require me to take a leap of faith. I needed to start doing the things that scared me. I practiced gratitude to lessen my fears, bolster my self-worth and see the possibilities for my life. I use this quote as a reminder to keep pushing myself, even when I feel fear if I want to achieve great things.
How do you personally overcome fear?
When you feel gratitude, it is impossible to feel the toxic emotions—envy, regret, and resentment. They are incompatible feelings. Researchers have found through studying neurology that our brains are wired such that we can’t be grateful and fearful at the same time. Studies support this with findings that people with high levels of gratitude also have low envy and resentment levels. Gratitude also increases happiness levels. The benefits of practicing gratitude are increased positive emotions, greater joy, and more optimism. Dr. Robert Emmons found that by practicing gratitude for as little as five minutes a day for ten weeks, research participants felt happier, more enthusiastic, and optimistic toward life.
What’s a productivity tip you swear by?
Practicing gratitude has numerous benefits, both mentally and physically. Studies have found that when people implement a gratitude practice, it leads to better sleep, reduced stress, increased resilience, higher self-esteem, and lower chances of depression. When we are healthy, mentally and physically, we are more productive. Writing gratitude down—pen to paper—has been shown to improve your physical health as well as emotional wealth. One study by Drs. Emmons and McCullough found that subjects who focused on gratitude exercised more and had fewer doctor visits after ten weeks. People who regularly practice gratitude report stronger immune systems, lower blood pressure, and fewer aches and pains. Gratitude can also be a catalyst for enhancing your life both personally and professionally. In the workplace, gratitude is the most powerful driver of employee job satisfaction, company loyalty, and employee motivation.
What valuable advice would you give new entrepreneurs starting out?
Shouldn’t your work week feel like your weekend does? Unfortunately, that’s not the case for many people. Years ago, my best friend was in a job that extraordinarily stressful and draining. As soon as she opened her eyes on Sunday morning and knew the workweek was right around the corner, her entire day became one of dread. Workers, now more than ever, may have symptoms like this pointing to burnout. In 2020, 45% of workers surveyed by Eagle Hill Consulting said they were exhausted and burned out. If you feel like a clock is ticking over your head on Sunday, you need to examine what is causing the stress. Is your work/life balance nonexistent? Are you taking time off to decompress? Find what work activities fuel you and work in your strengths to keep your energy levels up. Hire someone to do the tasks that drain you. Do regular check-ins with yourself to see how you are feeling to prevent the road to burnout.
What helps you stay driven and motivated to keep going in your business?
I’m grateful but not complacent. For me, this is a great way to sum up staying present and going after your dreams simultaneously. I think too often grateful can be misconstrued as being so happy you couldn’t want for anything more. That’s unrealistic. If I am thankful for my life, it doesn’t mean I’ve settled or stopped pushing forward. I have a very clear picture, both mentally and physically, of what I am striving for. I keep these goals in my sights every day. I am thankful for many amazing things, but I know even greater ones are coming. It’s why I took a chance and started my business.
Who should we interview next and why?
We spend one-third of our lives working. An outdated way of thinking is that it’s unprofessional to bring things like gratitude or compassion into the workplace. Yet, studies show that appreciation and gratitude are vital to creating the very type of workplace environments people actually want to work in. One of our most fundamental needs as humans is to feel appreciated. Leaders and companies who understand this principle, and practice gratitude, create productive, engaged employees. Walt Bettinger, CEO of Charles Schwab, has emphasized gratitude throughout the company. I would love to hear more about his inspiration and courage in an industry driven by financial outcomes.
If you only had $1000 dollars to start a new business, knowing everything you know now, how would you spend it?
Set yourself up for success and handle legal and business items first. It may not be the sexiest or most fun part of being an entrepreneur, but it will save you countless headaches down the road. I invested in a coaching program that not only helped me create my product but educated me on the legal requirements of forming a company. Now I can focus my efforts on scaling my business, knowing I have laid the foundation for smooth, automatic systems.
What are you learning now? Why is that important?
Most entrepreneurs, when they start out, wear all the hats in the company. In the beginning, I learned so many new skills around bookkeeping, social media, product creation, and legal requirements. Everything fell on my shoulders if it was going to get finished. That can be overwhelming, but if you stay focused and break down tasks into manageable chunks, it is doable. Now, I am learning to outsource and delegate so that I am freed up to do what I love most in the company—build relationships and make a difference in companies’ cultures.
What are your plans for the future, how do you plan to grow this company?
As we begin to reopen during the pandemic, I am continuing to scale my business by doing more speaking engagements and meeting with more business owners. Word of mouth is a powerful tool in this industry. Upon hearing about Gratitude Investors, the majority of people I meet express a need in their workplaces for more engagement and gratitude. I have the systems in place to scale this business, so I will continue to market, speak, and meet with leaders. In the future, I will bring on facilitators to reach more organizations.
How can readers get in touch with you?
We would love for you to stop by gratitudeinvestors.com and learn more about our gratitude-based employee appreciation programs. You can find daily inspiration regarding gratitude in the workplace on Facebook and Instagram at @Gratitudeinvestor, or on LinkedIn.
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