Recently, I have been trying to send compliments to stores, restaurants, or the like if I receive great service. Olive Garden was the latest recipient. Service there has been extraordinary the last three times I have visited. I sent them an email telling them so after I got home from there last Tuesday.
In the reply back, they wrote, "It's a rare person who takes the time to compliment. Thank you for being that person!"
I'm no superhero, just a person sitting behind a keyboard who types too many words, but it is amazing how just such a simple task can make people happy. I know from retail that it is very rare that someone takes the time out to write a compliment. They might give one in passing, and those even make you very happy. They can be enough to keep you going through the barrage of hostile customers that you need to also help. But a written one means that someone took the time out to write a compliment at a later time.
I need to continue to use my words to encourage and make people's days better. It might not hurt you to do that either. If you encounter someone that has done a good job at a store or a restaurant this holiday season, remember their name and shoot the company an email. Share the holiday cheer.