Aug 192 min read

Sunflower Effect

Be mindful of the sunflower effect! I was working with a leader who said, "Amber Vanderburg, I encourage my team constantly. I tell them "good job" every day!" I see and admire the positive intent. This is called a sunflower effect, and here's why this approach is not effective – and dare I say – detrimental in some cases:

First, the person or team must learn the difference between a good job and a great one. Why is today better than yesterday? Blanket's constant good jobs could dilute the impact of the encouragement. It's the same as looking out into a field of sunflowers and saying, "That sunflower is beautiful, that sunflower is beautiful, that sunflower is beautiful…." It loses its luster over time. So when the team does a great job compared to a good job - it isn't easy to discern the encouragement.

Secondly, vague performance feedback leads to vague performance improvement. Ambiguous feedback doesn't drive performance. The litmus test for effective, encouraging feedback is if the person knows what to do to get another good job.

Does this mean that you shouldn't tell your team a good job? ABSOLUTELY NOT!

Here's what I want you to do instead – tell the person WHAT they did that was good! And then clarify the impact and WHY that was desired. So, rather than "Good job" or even "Good job on the meeting today," – I might say, "Your preparation and clear responses to the project timeline questions during the planning meeting today helped align the action steps and expectations for the next month with the team. Good job." The person knows that the preparation and precise responses are desired and might also think of other ways to create alignment with this feedback during planning meetings.

The sunflower effect is not necessarily too much praise. You could tell your team good job every single day, multiple times a day – as long as it is specific, that helps to drive performance. So, here's what I want you to do – identify one specific thing your team or team member has done well today and let them know in actionable feedback.