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A grown man tells me, “My father never said, ‘I love you.'”
“Really? Never?” I reply.
“Never,” he says.
The pain in his eyes is real. And evident.
The deepest principle in human nature is the craving to be appreciated.
Williams James is credited with that quote. I don’t know who he was, but he was wise.
Recognition. Appreciation. Respect. We all want it. No, Mr. James was right – we crave it!
Why is it so difficult to incorporate into our communication? Why is it hard for a father to tell a son that he loves him?
I don’t know, but I do know it’s inexcusable.
Business people neglect many facets of effective of communication, but perhaps chief among them is the art of showing appreciation.
I know a business man – very successful financially – who believes it’s his job to “catch people making mistakes.” He’s very good at it, too. No, he won’t ever tell anybody they’re doing a good job. His success is the problem. His crude, deliberate berating of people works. Convincing him that even greater success might be his if he’d learn to behave differently is an impossible task.
I’m sad for him. And others like him.
As business people we have internal and external customers. It’s important to communicate our appreciation to all them. Simple, inexpensive and seemingly easy – but it remains one of the most neglected form of business communication.
I challenge you to set about changing that in your life – in business and in your personal life!
Thank you for listening. See, that wasn’t hard.
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