How to Show the Five Professional Love Languages in the Workplace

Do you know your team’s professional love languages?

September 14, 2023
Press the button to generate random icebreaker questions.
There are 300 more icebreaker questions at the bottom of the article
How would you describe your job to a five year old?
What season would you be?
What is a weird food you have tried? Would you eat it again?
What is your favorite holiday tradition?
Would you go in the mother-ship with aliens if they landed on Earth tomorrow?
What is your favorite season?
Do prefer working from home or the office?
What is your earliest memory of this job?
What is the best thing you have bought so far this year?
What is the earliest book you remember?
If you had to move to another country, which one would you choose?
You are the best criminal mastermind in the world. What crime would you commit if you knew you would get away with it?
What is your favorite movie genre to watch?
What was the last thing you ate?
What person from history would you add to Mount Rushmore?
What is a weird fact you know?
What is your favorite part of working from home?
Were the Spice Girls a good team?
Imagine you can instantly learn any language. Which would you choose?
If you could live in any state, which state would you pick?
Which fictional team is the best team of all time?
What did you want to be when you grew up?
What do you usually eat for a quick lunch?
What simple food will you never eat?
Show us the weirdest thing you have in the room with you right now.
Would you rather stay at a hotel or an AirBNB?
What is your favorite movie genre to watch?
Are you more productive in the morning or at night?
Who is someone in your community that makes a difference?
Who was your most unique pet?
Choose one famous person from history you want on your team during a zombie apocalypse.
What is a good way to give back to the community?
Which song could you listen to over and over again?
Is Hugh Grant funny?
What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast?
Would you want to have an imaginary friend today? Did you have one as a child?
What actor or actress would you want to play you in the movie about your life?
What is the best super power?
What is your New Years resolution?
You can only eat one food again for the rest of your life. What is it?
What is the best work holiday?
What is the first gift you remember receiving?
Would you rather join Metallica or Backstreet Boys?
What is the best example of a community you have seen?
What is an easy way to do something nice for someone?
Show us your phone background and tell the story behind why you picked this image.
What was your first job?
Pick any band to play at your funeral.
If you could have an unlimited supply of one thing for the rest of your life, what would you pick?
Which superpower would you give to your arch enemy?
What is the most obscure superpower you would want?
What emoji best describes how you are feeling right now?
If you could live in any country, which country would you pick?
Would you rather live in a city or a town?
What is your favorite holiday?
What is something you accomplished as part of a team?
What is your standard office lunch?
What is your most used phone app?
What is your favorite season?
Have you ever won something as a team?
Imagine you are a professional baseball player. What is your introduction song?
Beach holiday or ski trip?
Have you ever been to a funny comedy show?
Would you rather live at the North Pole or the South Pole?
What is your favorite song to sing?
If you could live in any state, which state would you pick?
Imagine you could teleport anywhere. Where would you go right now?
What is the most unusual job you have heard of?
What was the last thing you ate?
You can visit any fictional time or place. Which would you pick?
What do your family and friends think you do all day?
What movie do you wish you could watch again for the first time?
Show us your most-used emoji.
What was the most unique style or fashion trend you ever embraced?
What movie defined your generation?
You are stranded on a remote desert island. Are you alone or with your worst enemy?
What is your favorite knock-knock joke?
Have you ever told someone Santa is not real?
Do you know how to speak more than one language?
On a scale of 1 – 10, how much of a team player are you?
What is your #1 recommendation in this city?
What is your favorite holiday?
What bucket list item do you most want to check off in the next six months?
What is your favorite mythical creature?
What was the first way you made money?
If you could be great at any Olympic sport, which would it be?
Which song could you listen to over and over again?
When did you start liking/hating mushrooms?
Where is your favorite vacation spot?
Do you take your PTO all at one time, or another way?
Which show do you remember most from your childhood?
Which beverage goes best with pizza?
Would you want to have a personal assistant follow you around everywhere and do what you asked of them?
Have you ever met your idol?
What did you want to be when you grew up?
Would you rather live 100 years in the past or 100 years in the future?
What is your hobby?
When you are alone in the car, what volume is the music at?
Imagine you no longer have to work. How would you spend a Tuesday?
What is your favorite type of sandwich?

You may be familiar with the concept of the 5 love languages in personal relationships, which include physical touch, quality time, words of affirmation, acts of service, and receiving gifts. But how do these translate to professional settings? Introducing the concept of workplace love languages, sometimes also known as languages of appreciation in the workplace. Just as determining someone's love language in romantic relationships can make bonds stronger, understanding professional love languages can create a more positive work environment.

So, what are the five professional love languages? They are:

  • Feedback as Words of Affirmation
  • Dedicated 1:1 as Quality of Time 
  • Rewards as Receiving Gifts 
  • Support as Acts of Service - Get Help
  • Encouragement as Physical Touch 

Provide Opportunities for Feedback

The power of words of affirmation in personal relationships extends to the professional world as well. Providing positive feedback makes employees feel appreciated and valued. Remember, actions speak louder than words. So when feedback is constructive and actionable, it promotes both job satisfaction and professional growth. Providing structured feedback mechanisms, like the Manager feedback template ensures effective communication and appreciation in workplace relationships. This workflow allows you to organize different feedback meetings (1:1 or performance evaluations), set and track goals, and observe growth all from one place. Learn more about how the Manager Feedback Flow works here.

Set Aside Individual Time

The concept of quality time is just as important in professional relationships as it is in personal ones. Setting aside one on one time, perhaps over a one on one lunch, can make team members feel valued. These sessions provide opportunities to voice concerns, share feedback, and foster personal connections.

If you want to add structure, transparency, and accountability to your one-one-one meetings, try the customizable One on One meeting template. This template will help you document important goals and KPIs, create and edit talking points, and collect feedback all in one place Learn more about this one-on-one workflow template here

Recognize and Reward

Feeling valued often translates directly to job satisfaction. Recognizing and rewarding employees' contributions with tangible gifts like gift cards, company swag, or opportunities for professional growth can significantly enhance workplace relationships.  A tangible gift is a great way to show appreciation. Rewards like gift cards and sponsored meals are popular but they can come in other forms as well like company swag, trophies, donations to charities, or even opportunities for professional growth. 

When done correctly, employee recognition should be integrated in the daily workflow and allow everyone to feel valued by managers. With Assembly's Give Recognition Flow, employees and managers can recognize each other for work well done, publicly celebrate them, and redeem those recognitions for fun rewards. Learn how you can build a culture of internal appreciation here

Give a Helping Hand

In a professional context, acts of service can be shown by lending a helping hand, providing resources, or collaborating on tasks. Going the extra mile for a coworker not only shows them they're valued but also promotes a positive work environment and strengthens workplace relationships.

Not only does this show appreciation it can also create a spirit of teamwork

Don't make it hard to ask for help. Whether the person is a new employee or a seasoned executive, we all need help sometimes. Empower your people to reach out and help others by using a tool like Assembly's Get Help Flow. This Flow creates a place for people to request help and offer support, while opening up internal communication. Learn how you can build a culture of open communication and support here

Express Encouragement

In the workplace a love language like physical touch can be tricky, but essentially this love language comes down to expressing encouragement. This can be done with high-fives and thumbs-up (in person or with emojis) or cheering your coworkers on. Encouraging someone shows that you care and believe in their value and growth.

A great way to encourage your employees is to celebrate and publicly recognize them. Regularly celebrate your employees in a public and meaningful way and provide opportunities for team mates and managers to nominate each other. Assembly’s Employee Nomination Template engages employees to nominate and vote for one another. This way, there are so many opportunities for employees to feel valued and noticed for their contributions. Learn more about encouraging your employees with nominations and recognition here

‍In conclusion, understanding and integrating the concept of the 5 love languages icebreaker into a professional context can lead to enhanced workplace relationships, greater job satisfaction, and a more positive work environment. Recognizing and valuing your team members' primary love language, be it in personal or professional settings, is key to fostering stronger bonds.


Browse our Free Employee Recognition Guide

Get the foundational knowledge on creating an employee recognition program that boosts employee engagement and helps them feel valued.

Explore Guide

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Assembly SOC 2 compliant?

Yes, at Assembly, security is a top priority. Each quarter, we have ongoing security work that is everyone’s responsibility. While we maintain a strong security posture, it was important for us to prove to our customers that we do everything we claim to do. This led us to pursue a SOC 2 Type II report that would provide evidence of our compliance with industry gold-standard security practice.

What's the ROI for employee recognition?

There is study after study showing that employee recognition leads to increased engagement. This in return creates an environment where employees are happier and more motivated which increase productivity and reduces voluntary turnover significantly. In order to filled critical roles, companies tend to spend nearly twice the value of an annual salary. Assembly is an investment in your employees that supports your bottom line.

Does Assembly offer longer-term contracts?

Yes, we will offer contracts for companies with longer-term agreements to help larger customers have more certainty around future costs.

The minimum agreement term is a 12-month subscription.

Does Assembly offer onboarding support?

We do and for FREE! Any new customer needing further support to get started with Assembly to ensure you're set up for success can request custom onboarding support. Improving your employee experience is about much more than just using our amazing software; it’s about transforming your business to create a workplace that people love. That’s much easier to do with the personal support and advice from our passionate people experts.

How much do rewards cost?

At the time of redemption (when your employees exchange their points for a paid reward) you'll pay face value. If a reward is a $10 Amazon gift card, your cost will be $10. All paid rewards are billed for on a monthly basis.

The good news is that you don't have to pay for rewards upfront because we only charge you when points are redeemed, not when they're earned.

Does Assembly offer discounts?

We offer discounts or educational or charitable organizations. In order to secure a discount, you'll first need to book a demo with a customer support specialist.

For all other organizations, we are willing to consider longer-term agreements in exchange for discounts. To set up annual plans or longer, you will need to book a demo with a customer support specialist.

How do I cancel my plan if needed?

If you're on a month to month plan, you can go here and cancel anytime. If you're having concerns or need help setting up your account for success, you can always book a demo with a customer support specialist.

If you're on a longer-term custom plan, you'll need to reach out to your customer support specialist to cancel your account or email us at support@joinassembly.com.

What customizations are available?

Great question! You can customize your core values to match your organization's to boost and track alignment. You can change your currency from the 🏆 emoji (our default) to any emoji of your choice. You can swap our logo for your own. You can also set up company culture rewards such as, "Lunch with the CEO," "Buy a book on us," and so much more!

Who can give or receive recognition?

While we recommend a peer to peer set up where anyone in your organization can give or receive recognition, you can set up Assembly however you want. If you need to limit the people who can give or receive recognition, that's perfectly fine and can be done from your Admin, here.

What integrations are available?

Assembly connects to the tools your employees use every day to offer an easy, seamless experience with minimal change management.  

Assembly has integrations with HCM/HRIS systems like ADP, Google, Office 365, and Slack. We also integrate with communication tools like Slack and Teams so you and your employees can access Assembly wherever they work now.

What's your average adoption rate?

That depends on the company's permissions set up. That said, over 90% of the employees on Assembly's platform are recognized on a monthly basis. That means nearly every employee across all of our customers are receiving regular recognition from their peers, managers, or leadership. We're extremely proud of this.

Must rewards be set up to use Assembly?

They are not required. You can use Assembly without having rewards set up. However, we don't recommend it if you intend to have a high adoption and usage rate. You can always keep the costs down by offering internal culture rewards that are fulfilled by you internally.

Are points required to use Assembly?

No, you can remove allowances from anyone or everyone. It's up to you but we do recommend using points whether they're worth a real dollar value or not. Companies that use points have a much higher engagement rate even if those points don't exchange for real dollars.

Could find the answer you are looking for?

Please schedule time with an expert and we will help you to get all your questions answered