The Power of Praise

My wife and I like to go for long bike rides because it’s fun exercise and it also gives us a chance to talk and share our thoughts and ideas. Last week she told me about an article she read on building relationships with people and it stated there are five specific things that people react most strongly to. One of those things was praise (or the opposite - criticism), which got me thinking about last week…

On Friday I started work at 6am so that I could get off a little early and play 9 holes of golf. I walked on at Rancho San Joaquin and got paired up with a young man named Mike. He was super nice and a great golfer but when I asked him about his work, a big frown crossed his face. He said he has been working at a medical device company for 12 years and loves it. He had worked himself up to a supervisory position, but recently they got a new CEO who treats people badly. Mike says the CEO micro-manages everybody and is quick to criticize, so he has already started looking for a new job.

Over the weekend I went to a baseball practice with several of my Halo Baseball  teammates. I haven’t played a game in 4 months (due to a back issue) or practiced hardly at all, so it was really great to see my friends. These guys are awesome teammates. Every one of them acted happy to see me with huge hugs and high fives all around just for showing up. I only practiced for an hour but I constantly heard them yelling, “Great play, nice throw, that a ’boy” and more. As I got ready to leave my friend Gaston says, “Killer, I love turning double plays with you!” Trust me, I left with a big smile, feeling blessed and happy.

On Sunday my grandson Jack had a party to celebrate his 10^th birthday. Earlier in the week his mom told me that he has a lot of tools and loves to build things, but he needed a cabinet or a workbench for all his stuff. A workbench is an unusual request for a birthday present but Jack is an unusual boy who is truly gifted mechanically. So Jack and I went shopping Sunday morning and picked out a garage cabinet with a wooden work bench top, a vise, and some pegboard to organize and display all his cool tools. We assembled the workbench, the vise and the pegboard with Jack doing most of the work and I couldn’t help but praise his efforts and the awesome result. In return, Jack gave me the best smile I have ever seen. What a nice gift… for me!

I actually learned the power of praise a long time ago and will often try to catch somebody “doing something right” at work and then praise them in front of the whole group. However, as great as praise is, I sometimes forget that criticism can be just as powerful. So the next time I am tempted to be critical, I am going to remember that I should offer praise whenever possible, and that it is always possible!

If you were paid 10 cents for every kind word you said to someone, 

but had to pay 10 cents for every unkind word, would you be rich or poor?

~ Jacob Mr. Braude