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Forever Recognize Others’ Greatness

Solution Focused Strategies for Satisfied Staff, High Performing Teams and Healthy Bottom Lines

Countless engagement surveys and polls show that the majority of employees today want to feel more valued and to contribute in more meaningful ways. The problem is that disengagement is on the rise. This leaves people with two options (neither of which are good): 1) leave for something better, 2) stay without giving your talents, passions, and virtues fully to your role.

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And there’s also a third underutilized yet exceptionally powerful option that many people don’t consider. The exciting news is that it can immediately empower and reinvigorate individuals, teams, and organizations. In this book, based on the F.R.O.G. – Forever Recognize Others’ GreatnessTM recognition approach, learn what happens when leaders and employees leverage the essential greatness within themselves and one another. Using numerous examples of success and practical strategies, learn how you can use this revolutionary solution focused approach to better yourself, your workplace, and the bottom line.

The FROG Effect Workbook

Tools and Strategies to Forever Recognize Others’ Greatness

Just because you may be pressed for time, have limited funds, and have minimal buy-in doesn’t mean you can’t still infuse healthy intention and action into your organization’s culture. Whether you’re a busy frontline manager, c-suite executive, trainer, facilitator, coach or therapist, this workbook is full of solution focused tools that will enable you to elevate engagement immediately by capitalizing on the proven power of recognition.

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Building on the evidence presented in Forever Recognize Others’ Greatness, this how-to guide walks you step by step through strategies that will allow you to put recognition into action. Learn how to have more strategic talent conversations, boost resiliency, and up the fun factor in your meetings, retreats, workshops, and everyday interactions. With over 40 tools with multiple variations provided, you will find a plethora of ways to introduce and then continue to iterate the F.R.O.G. – Forever Recognize Others’ GreatnessTM approach. Whether you’re experienced or just starting your career, build solid relationships, teams, and organizational culture through an abundance of simple, engaging, solution focused strategies and activities.

Flip Side of Failing

How to Recognize and Leverage Greatness in Life and Work

Who among us has never experienced a failure? Yet we beat ourselves up, cover it up, and even judge others. Why? We’ve been programmed to hide our mistakes because we are ashamed.

What if it didn’t have to be this way? What if, on the other side of failure, was an awakening, a deeper relationship, an improved process? What might that do for our personal and professional relationships, our businesses, our careers, ourselves?

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Curious about what made some people exceptionally successful, Sarah interviewed over 30 accomplished Canadians about their greatness: Olympains, 3M scholars, awarding winning journalists and singer-songwriters, as well as inspirational Canadians who had triumphed over huge adversities, including residential schools, incarceration, addictions, and catastrophic accidents. Their stories are woven together into a formula for failure resiliency and unconditional recognition that we can all learn from.

By embracing the flip side of failing, you can utilize strategies that enable you to shine a light on obstacles, challenges, roadblocks, and outright failures so that you can leverage it as your superpower and not your kryptonite.

ROCKSTAR

Magnify Your Greatness in Times of Change (For Health Leaders)

How do you lead with heart and run an effective healthcare organization in the context of today’s constraints and strain? Is it even possible to be a great leader in healthcare today?

Sarah empowers you with the ROCK leadership behaviors that will produce STAR results, both right now and post-change. ROCKSTAR provides concrete advice and guidelines to help you focus on what matters most – your people.

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This book was written for healthcare leaders who want to embolden their staff, deliver quality care, meet standards, and create a great reputation for the organization. Because these goals are challenging during times of turmoil, this book is written in a practical, no-nonsense style.

Even with a burnt-out workforce, too few resources, and an ever-increasing pace of change, ROCKSTAR provides the clarity, focus and hope needed to lead in healthcare today.

ROCKSTAR

Magnify Your Greatness in Times of Change (For Women Leaders)

ROCKSTAR women are a powerful force in the workplace, yet the data shows and experience reveals that the quest for equality, satisfaction and unfettered opportunity continues.

Following the outstanding success and response to ROCKSTAR for Healthcare Leaders, Sarah McVanel expertly applies the principles of ROCK Behaviors and STAR Outcomes to the perpetually shifting and ever-evolving playing field in which women leaders toil and achieve.

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ROCKSTAR for Women Leaders provides ideas and techniques that enable women to move the needle forward every day – for themselves, their colleagues, those who report to them and the generations who will follow. You’ll find:

  • Practical strategies,
  • Validated evidence and
  • Advice from fellow women.

With Sarah’s help and her 20+ years of experience, you’ll build and deepen your practical toolkit for change readiness, resilience and, ultimately, greater success and satisfaction at work. Together, let’s lean into how to ROCK and get STAR results for ourselves and others!

Books in Bulk

If you’re looking to purchase books in bulk, reach out to us so we can show you our appreciation through a preferred price.

Kudos from the Chemo Chair

“I have two chemos left. What’s the best way to thank the staff?” Before I could even respond to Sonja, my dear high school friend, she lit up with enthusiasm. “Hey, I think I should FROG them!”

Despite grueling treatments, sickness, sleeplessness, and even COVID worries, Sonja channeled what little energy she had into F.R.O.G. – Forever Recognize Others’ GreatnessTM.

She spent her last treatments asking everyone she ran into at the hospital, “Who’s someone who deserves recognition?” She didn’t want to leave any invisible heroes behind.

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She gathered 100+ names – nurses, oncologists, volunteers, cleaning staff, the manager, and anyone else keeping the unit running. She gave out squishy frogs, FROG charms, compliment cards, and hand-written kudo notes to staff, like a Shriner at the Santa Claus Parade.

The moment she saw the shock on people’s faces, followed by a smile, it hit her. “How am I the first person to thank these people? And how many others go unthanked?” So, she issued challenges: she did Facebook Live sessions to get her family and friends to recognize five people per day; talked about it at the dinner table each night to get her family involved; and put FROG charms in her purse so that she could be on the ready to FROG anyone, anytime.

And when she was well again, she made a vow to herself to maintain the FROG habit. She’s realized that recognition is not just a reaction to deal with the “bad times,” rather it’s an intentional way of living and giving. Sonja’s motto has become, “Why fixate on suffering when you can focus on appreciating?”

If you know of a group of unsung heroes who deserve recognition, see how easy it can be with the many tools we’ve created.

Use our Recognition Kits to make a profound difference.

Recognition Products

F.R.O.G.™ Kudos Cards

This versatile recognition product enables frequent and easy recognition between peers and leaders. The cards are light enough to carry with you, adaptable enough to incorporate into meetings and training sessions, and stylish enough to use on public kudos boards. F.R.O.GTM Kudos Cards are the perfect way to form and sustain an affordable and meaningful recognition habit.

$30 (250/package)

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F.R.O.G.™ Thank You Cards

​The spirit of F.R.O.G.™ (aka: Fist Bump of Gratitude) lives on! FROGing is a daily gratitude practice, ​a state of consciousness, an attitude, an appreciation, a celebration of life. ​It is a reminder to share our gratitude with one another. ​“Thank you” are two words that carry so much weight. ​It can positively affect someone’s day, week, month, year, life. ​​Now, with your help, F.R.O.G.™ will live on through a note of thanks. ​Continue the spirit of gratitude with these thank you cards! Spread the word. Share the gratitude.

$15 (5/package)

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F.R.O.G.™ Tributes

Give a compliment to a colleague, a friend, your spouse, or your kids – just pull a card out of the deck and hand it to them. Can’t think of a compliment on the spot? No problem – just pull a card out of the deck and let the compliment do the talking. They’ll be sure to smile! No more awkwardness or wondering what to say, these professionally printed cards make it easy to give a compliment every time.

$35 (52 cards/package)

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Squishy Frogs

Make your appreciation known with Squishy Frogs. This cute amphibian is not only adorable, but it’s also ideal for recognizing someone’s efforts. They’re small enough to take anywhere you go, which makes them perfect for slipping into a birthday card, including in an envelope, or giving out to your co-workers. Each frog is slightly different in order to make them unique, and the flexible material makes them fun and brings levity into the workplace.

$20 (20/package)

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F.R.O.G.™ Charms

Do you have someone in your life you want to say “thanks” to? Are you looking for a recognition product that your recipient will cherish? They’re stylish enough to put on a lanyard, use as a bookmark, a gift at an appreciation event, or even put in a small frame. It’s an inexpensive gift that fits in a small envelope and can be mailed with one stamp. F.R.O.G.™ Charms are a fun, unique, and memorable token of appreciation.

$20 (30 charms/package)

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Nudging Towards Greatness

How do you boost resilience, fuel connection, and reignite collaboration across your entire workforce? How can you do this quickly, without burdening your already tired and overwhelmed leaders who are firefighting through growing sick time, absenteeism, and turnover (not to mention the hundreds of emails in their inbox)? Recognition. This Great Place to WorkTM certified organization had a solid recognition program, but in COVID, folks weren’t using it much. We needed to strip down the menu of options and focus on what could be done… immediately.

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We dug into the organization’s data and unearthed their best practices, took the juiciest examples, and highlighted recognition superstars. We infused this into two yummy customized keynotes that lit a fire within hundreds of staff and leaders from coast to coast. We reintroduced them to the magic of their system called “Nudges” and levelled up the excitement with a “Nudge Challenge.” Recognition caught on like wildfire! They became lean, mean complimenting machines! Before we knew it, the organization celebrated the first “nudgers” by giving them rewards that further taught them about the power of recognition. Within 24 hours, the number of “nudges” quadrupled, and it topped out at an all-time high of over 3500 in 1 month. Through each 90-minute keynote, we helped leaders shift their perspective about recognition from “no time to do” to “need to do” to “want to do.”
Perhaps more importantly, leaders remembered why they loved managing great people and those great people remembered why they loved working for this company. That’s the inevitable win-win that recognition creates. If your recognition program needs a nudge, let’s talk. Choose Your Session

Recognition Kits

The Leader’s F.R.O.G.™ Recognition Toolkit

The Leader’s F.R.O.G.™ Recognition Toolkit is the complete how-to that will take you from beginning to end in a process of skillful recognition.

With your copy of The FROG Effect Workbook, you will not only receive all the physical products and electronic copies mentioned in this guide, you will also receive a convenient checklist that will help you navigate a successful recognition program from start to finish.

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Included is one of each of the following: The FROG Effect Workbook, F.R.O.G.™ Tributes, F.R.O.G.™ Thank You Cards, F.R.O.G.™Kudos Cards, and F.R.O.G.™Charms.

$130

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F.R.O.G.™ Culture Starter Kit

The F.R.O.G.™ philosophy is a simple one: Forever Recognize Others’ Greatness™. It doesn’t take a big budget to recognize great people and keep them motivated to go above and beyond. It requires a little creativity, appreciation, and the desire to inspire others to do more great work!

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Our top-selling F.R.O.G.™ Culture Starter Kit is the perfect way to launch F.R.O.G.™! This kit includes everything you need to build, grow, and protect your people-centric, recognition-rich culture. Each kit is designed for a group of 10 people. For example, if you have 100 staff, purchase 10 kits. Included are downloadables, challenges, and tools as well as one of each of the following products: F.R.O.G.™ Tributes, F.R.O.G.™ Charms, Squishy Frogs, F.R.O.G.™ Thank You Cards, F.R.O.G.™ Kudos Cards.

$120

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F.R.O.G.™ Appreciation Events Kit

We all know it’s important to show employees their worth. And what better way to do it than to make it a memorable moment? It’s not easy to thank employees for their hard work on a daily basis, let alone plan a big enough splash that makes up for lost time. We’re here to give you all the tools and ideas you need for an unforgettable appreciation experience.

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The F.R.O.G.™ Appreciation Event Kit has all of the F.R.O.G.™ products you need to plan and execute an event that employees will remember for a long, long time. Each kit is designed for 10 people. So for example, if you have 100 staff, purchase 10 kits. Included is an Appreciation Events Guidebook, 10 Zentention Booklets, 2 Packages of F.R.O.G.™Thank You Cards, and one of each: F.R.O.G.™ Kudo Cards, F.R.O.G.™ Tributes, F.R.O.G.™ Charms.

 

$250

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Coaching Tools

F.R.O.G.™ Cards: Solution Focused Conversations

This coaching tool helps to fuel solution-oriented conversations rather than problem-focused debates.

With over 50 professionally printed and designed cards, this will become your go-to resource to enhance meetings, training, mentoring, supervision, mediations, and even networking. It’s perfect for leaders, educators, trainers, counselors, and anyone in a people-facing profession.

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With solution focused conversations, you can seek to understand the person’s definition of the problem and build on their strengths. Use this tool to help you create and maintain a new and meaningful approach to the difficult issues that we face in our work and our personal lives.

Flip Side of Failing Coaching Cards

When we fail, we can either let it beat us or use it as a powerful learning experience.

Flip Side of Failing Coaching Cards provides a tool for you and your team to harness the lessons learned from failure to build resilience, combat blame, and proactively plan using a failure resilient mindset.

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This resource comes as a set of 10 questions that you can use to engage others as a facilitation tool, as a meeting discussion activity, and as a debriefing tool. These questions will give you and those around you at work and home the answers and the tools you need to understand and manage failures, obstacles, and setbacks to move forward with resilience.

Zentention: Coloring & Coaching Journal

In this journal, you will create a delicious vision of your career and life purpose through the power of imagination, curiosity, and creativity.

The Zentention Coloring & Coaching Journal is half coaching journal and half adult coloring book. Through 21 powerful coaching questions, you will be inspired to reflect on yourself and your life, and ignite powerful conversations as a team.

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You can use this journal to capture your own self-reflections, give it as a thank-you gift at a recognition event, and use it as a positive resource at a team retreat. The possibilities are endless; contact us to explore the multitude of ways you can use it in your workplace and events.

Online Courses

Build Your Best Recognition Program Yet: How to Create a Recognition Initiative that Makes People Stay

Companies spend thousands (sometimes millions) on their recognition budgets, yet struggle to find their ROI (return on investment).

The biggest reason? They’re spending it on the wrong things.

Learn how to assess, build, and reallocate resources – money, time, energy – toward what really matters. If you’re serious about creating a recognition program – for your team, organization, or global workforce – that will retain your top talent, empower optimal performance, and fuel healthy collaborative cultures, you won’t find a more tools-rich, evidence-based, and empowering virtual how-to program with the expert guidance and proven tools.

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This is more than a course! It’s the roadmap you can’t get anywhere else, designed for you, by an international recognition expert.

Here’s how you know you need to take this course:

  • You keep having the same circular conversations in meetings: Why are our engagement levels so low? Why do people keep saying they’re dissatisfied with recognition despite all the programs we have around here? Why do great people keep leaving?
  • You wonder: How do we ensure staff and leaders feel appreciated so they stay and perform at their best? How can we make this sustainable? How can recognition become a cultural anchor for“the way we do things around here”?
  • You have been tasked with building or improving a recognition program as part of your People Strategy, yet you aren’t sure where to start.

Learn best practices in evaluating, building, and implementing sustainable recognition programs that get results. Through video step-by-step guidance, practical how-to checklists, and concrete templates, you will have all the guidance to launch (or rebuild) an award-winning, engagement-building, and talent-retaining quality recognition program.

You could invest $50K having us do this for you, or you could have Sarah talk you and colleagues through the steps for success and lasting impact.

Great Morale Microlearning Series: Get Confident, Skilled and Effective in a Hurry

You’ve got a lot on your plate, in your head, and in your inbox. Some of it is noise and much of it is important. Because you’re so busy, you don’t have the time to read the latest business, leadership, and personal development books (not to mention cut through the noise of how-to blogs and “meh” infographics).

The Great Morale Microlearning Series offers practical, real-life solutions to today’s workplace challenges. Each microlearning course takes less than an hour to complete, designed in 15-minute chunks so you can squeeze it in, yet get exponential return on your time.

From habit formation to navigating tough conversations to communication effectiveness, you will learn proven strategies to implement immediately.

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Your investment gains you unlimited access to our virtual community (think “Facebook Group” with only value and none of the annoying sales pitches and cheesy quotes). You also get open access to all of our microlearning programs with no time limit. Let’s make workplaces great again, together. Jump in!

Write Your Great Book Now: Become an Author This Year

Have the confidence, clarity, and competence to get your money-making, life-giving, career-fulfilling book written right now!

This isn’t your typical 30-minute course that you do while sitting on your couch or while waiting in line. This course is extensive, in-depth, and engaging.

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This program has helped dozens of authors successfully write and publish the book of their personal and professional dreams. Sarah, a 5x author, will give you the practical strategies, support, and guidance needed to jumpstart you to get that book written.

BTW, if you think you are not “good at writing,” she’ll kick that belief to the curb. Don’t rob the world of your wisdom. Write your great book now!

The Side Hustle Solution: Stay In Your Job and Work For Yourself

​You may have considered entrepreneurship, yet feel disloyal to your employer for even thinking about it. Or perhaps you are just too overwhelmed about where to start. That’s where a side hustle – a juicy small biz you run while also working – comes in.

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There are lots of benefits of a side hustle.

  • Monetize your passion and expertise
  • Grow your network
  • Fund your travel habit and lifestyle
  • Save for a house downpayment
  • Create a “backup” plan for your career

Sarah wants to help you take the plunge into solopreneurship while also reaping the rewards of a paycheque, great colleagues, and exciting career prospects. ​

Having spent thousands of hours researching and even more investing in business coaches, courses, and other professionals, Sarah is sharing everything she’s learned from these experts and her 8 years in entrepreneurship.

Through 8 modules, this easy-to-understand, video tutorial-based, and tools-rich program will give you the action steps to get you started. ​And the best part is there’s no time limit. Keep coming back as you get clearer and gain momentum in your business.

Sarah has walked the walk. She’s not just written about entrepreneurship, she’s done it and she wants to help you do it, too!

Your Great Year: 52 Weeks of Greatness

​Get ready for a year of focusing on what’s working, what you most want, and how to get in ACTION to make that great year a reality. In just one hour or less every week, you will be better able to leverage your talents, passions and virtues so you can live your greatest potential in work and life!

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This program is designed to help you uncover and celebrate your greatness. Each week you’ll explore a new aspect of what makes you great, through expert interviews, reflection, and self-discovery. By the end of the program, you’ll have a richer understanding of your own special talents and how to leverage them in work and life.

ROCKSTAR: Magnify Your Greatness in Times of Change

During change, your confidence, and clarity as a leader can take a hit. What do you do when everyone is looking to you for guidance, updates, and excitement, yet you’re change-fatigued and feeling chaotic yourself?

That’s where this course and community come in. Learn how to ROCK as a leader and still get STAR results. With leaders supporting leaders, this course is practical, to the point, and full of juicy resources. The community attached to this program backs you up for continued success and satisfaction.

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With 20+ years of experience supporting leaders, Sarah cuts through the complexity of leadership theory, offers practical resources, and lowers the emotional temperature of chaos. This program keeps you grounded with key questions such as “What can I do?”, and backs you up with support from a community of fellow ROCKSTAR leaders.

BTW, given the strain of being a leader in the world right now, we’ve decided to make this a gift to you. So, you officially have nothing to lose. Literally, nothing. ROCK with us by registering today.

“I can live two months on one good compliment.”

– Mark Twain

Dana Lloyd

CEO, AnswerPlus

"My team and I are thoroughly enjoying Your Great Year. We are meeting as a group on a weekly basis to debrief on the material and it’s becoming one of my favourite meetings of the week. I’m getting to know my team so much more and the discussions have been really inspiring."
Mikael Dam

Manager, Learning & Development at Corus Entertainment

"The solution focused coaching cards are wonderful. Such a useful tool in the coaching that I do in my role."
Lauren Sergy

Founder, Up Front Communication

"Had just finished Sarah's book Flip Side of Failing and then immediately picked up ROCKSTAR. I'm not in healthcare but the lessons and ideas in this book were still totally applicable. This is great for anyone who is feeling burned out in their work for any reason but is especially timely given the ongoing COVID crisis. The ROCK principles were easy to tie into my own work practices. Highly recommend."
Laurie Flasko

Principal, Laurie Flasko & Associates

"The FROG Effect Workbook is one of my favourite go-to's for workplace exercise. Great accompaniment to my Forever Recognize Others' Greatness book."
Lisa Schmidt

Founder, Worksphere

"Sarah's friendly tone, combined with her broad experience as a leader and speaker, give this book both gravitas and a sense of open-hearted possibility. She leverages her personal story in Flip Side of Failing as a spring board into the common experience of failure and loss we all face in our lives, and from there, invites us to see these so-called failures not only as inevitable, but as critical in our personal and professional growth. HIGHLY recommended!"
Lynn Stubbings

Executive Director (retired), Cook's School Day Care Inc

"Once again this year for Child Care Worker and Early Childhood Educator Appreciation Day, I will be spreading your message to my team. I have enough Kudo cards to give each of the 20 educators a personal message. I am also giving the frogs I made this year. I make a point of spreading the news about your Greatness Magnified sites and your amazing FROG acronym whenever I can."
Christa MacLean

Dean, School of Nursing & School of Health Sciences, Saskatchewan Polytechnic

"Sarah, thanks for a great session with our team yesterday. I was so impressed with how you got the group chatting/participating and so enthused for the upcoming school year. Thank you, thank you, thank you! I look forward to reviewing the resources and our team seemed very excited to read your book Flip Side of Failing and use the accompanying coaching cards!"
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