Let me guess: you make time to follow up when things go wrong. 

You spot the mistake. You catch the error. You bring the heat. And yes, you do it because you care—about the business, the clients, the mission. 

But when’s the last time you did a thank you tour? 

Don’t feel bad. I was the same way. As a leader, I’m wired for problems. I see a tangled mess, I want to solve it. Somebody’s struggling? I’m all in. Call me the Chaos Whisperer. There’s a certain satisfaction in unraveling something that’s on fire. It feels like you’re leading. 

But here’s the problem: when you’re neck-deep in everyone else’s fires, you miss the people quietly doing everything right. 

You know who I’m talking about—the ones who just handle it. No drama. No breakdowns. No client escalations. Just consistent execution. 

And if you’re not careful, those people will go unnoticed… right until they burn out and leave. 

The Hack That Fixed It 

Here’s what I started doing, and it changed everything: 

I journal every day. No, this isn’t the hack. That’s just how I keep my head from spinning off and get ideas for blogs like this one. When I am journaling I also list out 3 people that made my day better. But that’s just the start.  

Here’s the actual move: 

Every Friday, I ping my management team—both tiers: the managers, and the managers of the managers. And I ask one question: 

“Who on your team was a total rock star this week—and what did they do?” 

It takes them two minutes to answer. But it does two things: 

  1. It forces them to think about who’s crushing it.
  2. It gives me a real-time list of MVPs.

Then I reach out. Directly. One line. 

“Hey, just wanted to say thanks. I heard what you did this week. That was awesome. Keep it up.” (Get specific, ask for the details from the manager.) 

No big production. No virtual trophy. Just real acknowledgment from the top. 

You’d be amazed what that does to morale. And here’s the kicker—it does just as much for me. 

The Hidden Bonus: Fixing a Bad Day 

Let’s be honest. We all have those days. The days where something breaks that never should’ve. Someone drops the ball. Something explodes, and now you’re angry, frustrated, and wondering why everything feels like a dumpster fire. 

It’s easy to spiral. 

That’s when I hit the thank you list. 

I stop. I look at the names. I remember the people doing it right. I send those messages. And just like that, my brain flips back into growth mode—the mindset you have to have when you’re building a business on 40% year-over-year growth. 

Try It 

Seriously. Try it this week. Block 30 minutes on Friday late afternoon. Ask your team who stood out. Send some notes. If it works for you like it works for me, it’ll be a leadership game-changer. 

You’ll reinforce the culture you actually want. You’ll catch people doing things right. And best of all, you’ll go into the weekend feeling like you’re building—not just reacting. 

Not bad for something that takes less time than scrolling through LinkedIn pretending it’s “business development.”