Mark Twain once said, "I can live for two months on a good compliment."

Money may attract people to the front door, but something else has to keep them from going out the back. Another survey showed the number one reason people quit their jobs was for a lack of recognition and praise.

Compensation fell into second place. A pat on the back, a personal note from the supervisor, and small celebrations can do wonders for building morale.

Personal recognition plays a vital role when realizing that recognition reinforces and encourages the same behavior. If we reinforce positive behavior, it will repeat itself.

Recognition by one's peers is more motivating than by supervisors. United Services Automobile Association (USAA) provides "Thank You" note stationary for their workers. Employees are encouraged to say "Thank You" to each other for the help they receive at work.

The most surprising thing happened on the first day USAA printed the notes . . . they ran out! The company couldn't keep up with the demand.

Nothing can replace personal recognition and sincere appreciation. It is a powerful tool in keeping good workers. These following facts summarize the impact recognition has on the workforce:

Behavior that is recognized reinforces that same behavior

Effective recognition does not have to be monetary

Effective recognition must be timely and sincere

Little things can mean a lot

Recognition by one's peers is more powerful than by supervisors

The Gwinnett County Tax Commissioners office, located in Lawrenceville, Ga., has one of the most innovative reward and recognition programs I've seen. They call the program "Shining Stars."

They practice peer recognition where co-workers reward each other for doing a good job.

Shining Stars" has taken off like a rocket. Since this is a local government, pay raises and promotions are limited.

Katherine Sherrington, the Tax Commissioner, realized she needed something to bridge the gap. She also realized that the employees themselves know who works hard and who deserves recognition. Managers can't be everywhere all the time. Therefore, the employees are in the best position to catch people doing the right things.

Shining Stars is a printed form they give to each other for doing a good job. Workers have an unlimited supply of the "Shining Star" forms.

Employees handwrite a little note about what their co-workers did and hand it or to send it through distribution to the awardee.

Throughout the walls, doors and cubicles, employees proudly display their form.

For added recognition, monthly the office formally recognizes the employee who received the highest number of forms. They get a special gift from the commissioner. Then they put all the forms given out during the month in a basket and names are randomly drawn for additional prizes.

They read the forms aloud and give recognition to both the awardee as well as the person submitting the form. Then the winner draws for his or her prize from another basket. This simple, but powerful program insures everyone gets some form of recognition.

Building a motivating reward and recognition system such as the one in Gwinnett County follows what I call the FAST-FUN formula:

F-Focus on the behavior you want to reward

A-Avoid bureaucratic judging and committees

S-Simplicity, do not make your program too complicated or formal

T-Team Ownership, let the employees run it and own it

FUN-Make it fun, entertaining and as spontaneously as possible.

Gregory P. Smith lives in Conyers, Georgia. He helps organizations solve problems and build more productive work environments. For further information please call (770) 860-9464 or send E-mail to greg@chartcourse.com. You can find more information and business tips at www. chartcourse.com.