This is National Truck Driver Appreciation Week (September 16 to 22).
Created in 1995, it is an annual designated time which brings public attention to the difficult job truckers do - professionally and safely, while managing to balance the variety of demands and duties of family life.
Motor carriers, shippers, trucking industry manufacturers and suppliers, industry associations and local communities host special events and promotions in honor of professional truck drivers. There are free lunches and giveaways, like pens, rulers and hats.
At some companies, dispatchers and fleet managers cook burgers and hot dogs for drivers. At some travel plazas provide free windshield cleaning services and coffee. Governors and local leaders issue proclamations in honor of the professional truck driver.
It is really a shame that the trucking industry doesn't express its appreciation to truckers on a more routine basis. Doing so would help reduce driver turnover.
According to the U.S. Department of Labor, some 64 percent of Americans who leave their jobs say they do so because they don't feel appreciated. Gallup reports that almost 70 percent of people in the U.S. say they receive no praise or recognition in the workplace.
Appreciation is very important and beneficial. It's a fundamental human need.
Everyone wants a "pat on the back" once in a while because we want to be "noticed" and we need to know that we’re important.
Think about it. When it comes to our jobs, we respond to honest and sincere appreciation expressed through recognition of our work because it confirms that our work is valued. When we and our efforts are valued, our satisfaction and productivity rises, and we are motivated to maintain or improve our good work.
A lack of appreciation has the complete opposite effect, causing reduced performance and productivity. Beyond that, it promotes a poor attitude.
So, be sure to thank a trucker for his hard work.
Appreciation costs nothing and takes little time to do.
It wouldn’t hurt to appreciate your workers as well for a job well done when appropriate.
Be advised: Appreciation has to be honest and sincere. Mean what you say and say only what you mean. Otherwise, the other person will invariably sense that you're lying.
A fake show of appreciation does more harm than good as it will offend the other person and may make them think that you have ulterior motive.
It was Maya Angelou, an American author and poet, who said: "People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." That is the power of appreciation.
