Positive Principles Newsletter
July 2004
____________________________________________
" ...I know that the only source of happiness
is within me, and I will
begin to share it. Like a perfume, I know that I cannot pour it on others
without getting a few drops on myself."
- Og Mandino, "The Choice"
"You cannot antagonize and influence at the same time."
- John Knox
____________________________________________
This month’s tip – Choose to become an encourager.
The childhood chant "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words
can never hurt me" is a lie.
Do you remember every time you fell from your bike as a child? How
about every time you have hit your knee or elbow working around your
house? Most people forget these incidents as soon as the physical pain
subsides.
Do you remember some nickname that you hated as a child? Did your parents
or teachers ever tell you something that made you feel inferior or weak?
Do you remember any negative comments you've received on job performance
reviews?
If you're like most people, you remember these negative words long after the
moment has passed.
Now consider the positive words you have received. Maybe, like me, they
came from your family as a child. Maybe they came from a favorite school
teacher,
coach, or mentor. Think for a moment about the impact these words have had
on
your life.
Positive or negative, words leave a mark. The mark is not on the surface
where
you can see it, but there is a mark.
Here's a story to illustrate my point. As a child, my parents and I lived
in
North Carolina. Both sets of my grandparents lived in Texas. We got to
visit
Texas about twice a year. During these visits we often split our time
between
the two families. I loved both dearly, but I always wanted to spend more
time
with one than with the other. Both sets loved me. Both treated me well.
Both
would do nearly anything for me. But there was one big difference. One
grandmother called me "precious, angel, baby child" and "my wonderful,
precious
angel". The other called me Guy. Which do you think was my favorite?
Probably
not much of a stretch to know where I wanted to spend my time.
I loved both of my grandmothers, but one became a greater influence on my
life. Why? She constantly spoke words of encouragement to me and everyone else she came
into
contact with for that matter. In fact, she still does to this day. She
always
tells me how wonderful I am, how much she loves me, and how proud she is of
me. As an adult, I still look forward to speaking with her.
Earlier this year my grandfather passed away and I spoke at his funeral. I
did
the best I could to pay tribute to one of the greatest men I have ever
personally
known. Just last week, my grandmother called again to tell me how wonderful
my
comments were and how smart and wise I am. I don't really believe that I am
the
smartest person on the planet, but it sure feels good to have someone tell
you that. After we spoke, I felt like a million bucks and believed that I could
accomplish anything.
Would you like to have that influence on people? Would you like to inspire
the
people around you to work harder and accomplish more? You do hold that
power. Positive words have the power to move people. As Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
said,
"Treat a man as he appears to be and you make him worse. But treat a man as
if he
already were what he potentially could be, and you make him what he should
be."
Next to example words are probably the most powerful tools leaders use.
Words
communicate your hopes, your dreams, your vision, your message, and your
heart. Words show other people how you see them. As a leader, your words make a
difference. Your words will either build-up or tear down, encourage or discourage,
inspire or
deflate. The choice is up to you.
So for now, I encourage you to remember this month's tip and spread some
perfume of
happiness around as you . . .
Choose to become an encourager.
Have a great day,
Guy Harris
The Recovering Engineer
