I spoke last night at a local parish to a group of dedicated religious education teachers. We spent over an hour looking at best practices of content delivery and shared our common struggles and successes. I recalled the example set by a Seton Hall Professor who would always affirm student participation. Instead of "Cool answer" or "Ok", he would follow up with "thank you for that".

The next time you are in a meeting or leading a workshop, try "thank you for that" after someone offers their two cents. It's a small detail which can make a big difference.