The two most powerful words a leader needs to speak every morning

Check out the original publication on LinkedIn.

There is a mountain close to where I live in Phoenix called Camelback Mountain (yes, looks like a camelback lying down) that I hike on a regular basis. The trail is only a little over a mile, but it is pretty much straight up. It is an extremely popular trail, and by the time one completes the trail in a little over an hour they will have encountered 50 to 150 people on average.

I have probably hiked Camelback over a couple of hundred times in the last twenty years, and in the last year I paid particular attention to the number of people who greeted me on the trail, as well as how people reacted when I said “Good Morning” in a variety of tones. Over those hikes last year I probably encountered over 3,000  people, and on each hike I varied my greeting strategy.

Here are the details of the 2020 study:  

• 1/3rd of the time I said nothing. No greeting, nada, zilch
• 1/3rd of the time I said good morning but more as a courteous passing comment
• 1/3rd of the time I said good morning with heart, meaning and positive energy, as in, I was really wishing them to have a great morning

The final results:

• 1/3rd of the time I said nothing – over 85% of the people I encountered didn’t say anything, and without question under 3% gave a genuine good morning
• 1/3rd of the time I said good morning but more as a courteous passing comment – About 50% of the people I encountered replied with a courteous good morning or “morning”, with a little under 10% responding with a genuine and energetic good morning
• 1/3rd of the time I said good morning with heart, meaning and positive energy – About 60% responded with a good morning, and another 30% responded with a genuine and energetic good morning.   Some seem surprised by the genuine good morning, and others seemed excited by the good morning, almost as if they had come across another rare soul who greeted people the same way each day

Most leaders hopefully understand that when one puts out positive energy, they can start a chain reaction of positive energy.  There are numerous articles in Inc., Harvard Business Review, LinkedIn and others that all reference the power of positive energy on leadership. What is important to note is that positive energy has to be genuine, and in my personal study above, genuinely wishing individuals a GOOD morning with positive energy had an immense impact.   Saying good morning without any positive energy is what most people do if they verbally great another, and while it is a nice gesture, it doesn’t move the needle in terms of connection or engagement.   

A genuine good morning does wonders for connection with your direct reports, your peers and your boss (es). It shows you are observant. It shows you are actually excited for them to have a great start to their day. It shows that you are a leader with optimism and energy for the day. It shows that you care about them. And, it only takes less than a minute. You would be hard pressed to find any other daily activity that requires just a tiny be of effort to generate such a high return. 

Finally, giving out a genuine good morning puts you, the leader, in a more positive mental state. Not only does it feel good to say and deliver, you will get positive energy back from those you direct it towards. Yes, energy is contagious. Whether it is good, neutral, or bad, it will come right back to you. Error on the side of always sending good energy, and there is nothing better than a positive and genuine good morning greeting to get the energy flowing in the right way each day.

Make a habit of giving out great “good mornings” starting now. You’ll get some surprising responses, as in, “why is he or she greeting me like this – he or she must need/want something.” Eventually people will realize you are very sincere with your greeting, and in turn, your relationship with them and your impact as a leader will skyrocket.

Finally, from me to you, Good Morning!·