Ever work for someone who preferred a 'bullying and intimidation' managerial style? This type of bullying doesn't involve spitballs and shiners in schoolyard, but it might as well because it produces same feelings of inferiority, worthlessness and mistrust among peers. It turns workers disloyal, dishonest, and downright disgusted. The bullying managerial style is way out of fashion, and for a reason: it doesn't work! What DOES work? Positive reinforcement. Why? When you reward your workers, they perform better.

Ever notice how every big company works in 'teams' these days? The notion of corporate team model was dreamed up by someone who realized that all folks really want is to be appreciated for their talent and ability. If you team up four or five well-selected people, each with a unique, highly-developed skill; cheer them on and reward them for all their accomplishments... what you're going to get is some jacked-up productivity and a stellar team that will follow you to ends of earth.

What are some ways to let your team members know how much they're valued; and in doing so, spur them on to success?

Accentuate positive. Is there a way that you can put a positive spin on a negative criticism? As a manager, this is such an important skill. Let's say writer you recently brought on board isn't 'catching on' to company's prescribed way of creating headlines. You may feel frustrated and tempted to chastise this person, but what will a thoughtless reprimand do for her productivity in long run? Instead, soften your critique and infuse it with a positive message, maybe something like, "You did a great job catching all of those typos but I'd love for you to give me a couple more headline options before we hand this in." Tread lightly on those fragile young egos; pride is such a delicate thing!

Open lines of communication. As a manager, you're busy dealing with people on outside, which means you may not always be aware of what goes on behind scenes. Encourage group discussions where your workers can air their grievances. When there's a conflict, let your employees hash it out while you act as calm and rational mediator. Sometimes all it takes is a few words hitting air to clear up a misunderstanding. If you give your people a little more control and benefit of doubt, they'll feel appreciated, depended on, and willing to go that extra mile.

I recently took an organizational behavior class where my professor conducted a strategic thinking exercise in which groups of students were to be a part of a scholarship committee. The purpose of our committee was to use strategic thinking on allocating a scholarship budget to reward several incoming freshmen to our university. I, along with some classmates represented freshmen candidates who would receive scholarship.

These candidates all had different strengths that would live up to standards and reputation of university. For example, my candidate was a high school senior who would not be able to attend college without a scholarship. Her strength was found through music and should she receive a scholarship to university, she would contribute to school’s music program. Another candidate was a gifted athlete who would be an asset to school’s basketball team. A third candidate was an intellect who would thrive in academic realm. Moreover, my argument on why my candidate deserved scholarship was among competing arguments from classmates who wanted same for their candidates.

We had a few options to consider:

• Are some candidates more in need of funding than others?
• Do some candidates deserve more funding than others?
• Should we evenly distribute scholarship fund so that everyone benefits?
• Should we give all scholarship money to best-rounded candidate who would make biggest impact on school’s reputation?