Compliment Challenge
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Stress & Mental Health€0 · freeunder 30 min

Compliment Challenge

Appreciation in everyday work life is not a soft-skill luxury but a measurable health factor. Employees who regularly receive positive feedback show lower cortisol levels, higher job satisfaction, and lower turnover. The Compliment Challenge turns appreciation into a deliberate practice for seven days.

What a week changes that no seminar can explain The problem with appreciation in everyday life isn't a lack of willingness, it's a lack of habit. Anyone who consciously works to give someone an honest, specific compliment every day – not "great job," but "your summary today really helped me because..." – quickly notices: others open up, conversations become more personal, the atmosphere shifts. Seven days are enough to feel it.

Why no one should be left out The power of the challenge lies in including everyone – the colleague in the next office, the technician in the basement, the person at the front desk. Anyone used to praising only within their own department makes a discovery: people you barely know respond to recognition at least as gratefully as close colleagues. That reshapes the sense of community within the company for good.

How to put it in place

  1. 1
    Aktionswoche terminieren und einen leichten Rahmen setzen: 1 ehrliches Kompliment pro Tag, 1 Woche lang
  2. 2
    Prinzip schärfen: ehrlich und konkret statt floskelhaft („Danke, dass du gestern eingesprungen bist" statt „super gemacht")
  3. 3
    Freiwilligkeit sichern: Mitmachen ist ein Angebot, niemand wird zu Nettigkeit verpflichtet
  4. 4
    Optional eine kleine Anregungskarte mit Beispielen vorbereiten, um den Einstieg zu erleichtern
  5. 5
    Challenge ankündigen und das „ehrlich statt Floskel"-Prinzip erklären
  6. 6
    Selbst vorangehen und am ersten Tag sichtbar ein konkretes Kompliment aussprechen
  7. 7
    Zum Weitergeben ermutigen: Wer eins bekommt, gibt eins weiter
  8. 8
    Jeden Tag bewusst eine Person mit einer echten Wertschätzung ansprechen
  9. 9
    Auf Breite achten: auch Kolleg:innen bedenken, die sonst wenig Sichtbarkeit haben
  10. 10
    Kurz erinnern (Mittags-Ping), damit es im Alltag nicht untergeht
  11. 11
    Kurz reflektieren: Wie hat sich die Stimmung angefühlt?
  12. 12
    Freiwillig Erlebnisse teilen lassen – ohne jemanden bloßzustellen
  13. 13
    Überlegen, was bleibt: z.B. ein wöchentlicher Wertschätzungs-Moment im Teammeeting

What you need

Effort
under 30 min
Cost
Free
Setup
5 min
  • Free
  • Immediately actionable
  • Positive culture

Eligible for funding: up to €600 tax-free

As part of a structured workplace health process, this measure is tax-free under § 3 no. 34 of the German Income Tax Act (EStG) up to €600 per employee per year — BGF-Kompass supplies the process. Certified offers (e.g. from Upfit) are additionally subsidised by statutory health insurers under § 20b SGB V.

Health-insurer funding & tax: how to apply →
Ideal to start with

Start this measure now

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Contributes to

Organize team events

Measure the impact with

COPSOQ – Psychische Belastung

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BGF-Kompass covers German workplace health promotion (BGF): funding paths, figures and legal references (e.g. § 20b SGB V, § 3 No. 34 EStG, the statutory-health-insurer prevention guidelines) apply to Germany.