What's Your Workplace Love Language?

What's Your Workplace Love Language?

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1. Words of Affirmation aka Feedback + Mentorship

The first love language is normally words of affirmation. We think this fits perfectly into the workplace as is—for the most part. However, unlike a romantic relationship, the workplace is not exactly the environment to dole praise out when it’s undeserved or when it actually worsens the problem. To that end, we changed this love language to feedback and 

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1. Words of Affirmation aka Feedback + Mentorship

mentorship. Personally, I love feedback. Even if it’s tough to swallow (and, wow, sometimes it really is), well-meaning feedback is the key to learning about yourself and growing. If you think feedback and mentorship might be your primary workplace love language, you can actually communicate that pretty easily. Make it clear to your 

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1. Words of Affirmation aka Feedback + Mentorship

teammates and leadership that feedback is what propels you to do better. If you have aspirations of leadership, let your manager know that you are open to learning new ways to do things in order to strengthen your own managerial skill sets.

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2. Quality Time aka Workplace Bonding

Maybe I’ve been watching too much Ted Lasso, but I think workplace bonding is more important than ever. So many of us are still working remotely and may continue to do so for the foreseeable future. Lately, as I look around and speak with my friends and coworkers, I’ve seen everyone’s confidence start to 

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2. Quality Time aka Workplace Bonding

wane a little. I think we should derive most of our confidence from within. However, I also think it’s fine to get some affirmation from the outside.  To put it in dessert terms, we should be able to make our confidence sundae and allow outside influence to be the whipped cream, sprinkles, or the cherry on top.

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3. Gifts aka New Opportunities

This is our reworking of the gifts love language. We’re not here to say that there is no place for a celebratory gift certificate to your favorite coffee shop.  Physical gifts are a great reminder of someone caring for you, thinking of you, and bringing you a physical manifestation of that care. In the workplace, we think the 

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3. Gifts aka New Opportunities

best “gifts” can be new opportunities. When this is your love language, you work hard to make sure you’re at the top of the list to be on a new project or take on a new opportunity.

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4. Acts of Service aka Support

Another love language is acts of service. In Chapman’s terms, this is when a partner goes out of their way to make your life easier. We reworked the acts of service love language into support and care. This language is for someone who really believes that actions speak louder than words. Support, in the workplace, 

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4. Acts of Service aka Support

might look like checking in with someone who is struggling or over-worked. Unlike some other love languages, support includes action. Instead of saying something like, “Let me know if you need help,” you might share a document or resource you found helpful when working on a similar project.

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5. Touch aka Encouraging Touchpoints

Hey, we’re back to Ted Lasso again. Make room for encouragement—both to give it and to receive it in the workplace. I think we all knew that physical touch was going to be the love language we couldn’t translate into the workplace. The so-called language of physical touch is not something we want to explore too much in the 

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5. Touch aka Encouraging Touchpoints

workplace—besides a fist bump or a perceptible head nod in a video call. The physical touch love language is a tangible reminder of love. It actually goes back to the affection you received as a child. For the workplace, we replaced physical touch with encouragement. Think of the phone call or the email you received when you got the job. 

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5. Touch aka Encouraging Touchpoints

The hiring manager likely summarizes what they loved about you, what they hope to see from you, and how excited they are for you to start working. This sort of encouragement can tend to be cast aside as we settle into the busyness of work life. Encouragement can be touchpoints or compliments regularly infused into the 

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5. Touch aka Encouraging Touchpoints

workweek. We tend to gloss over successes and accomplishments without ever taking a beat. Consider creating encouraging touchpoints throughout your week.

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