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with the children was yelling at them. And,
as in so many cases, the children became a little worse
rather than better after each such session - and so did
the parents. There seemed to be no end in sight for this
problem.
Mr. Ringelspaugh determined to use some of the principles
he was learning in our course to solve this situation.
He reported: We decided to try praise instead of
harping on their faults. It wasn t easy when all we could
see were the negative things they were doing; it was
really tough to find things to praise. We managed to find
something, and within the first day or two some of the
really upsetting things they were doing quit happening.
Then some of their other faults began to disappear. They
began capitalizing on the praise we were giving them.
They even began going out of their way to do things
right. Neither of us could believe it. Of course, it didn t
last forever, but the norm reached after things leveled
off was so much better. It was no longer necessary to
react the way we used to. The children were doing far
more right things than wrong ones. All of this was a
result of praising the slightest improvement in the children
rather than condemning everything they did wrong.
This works on the job too. Keith Roper of Woodland
Hills, California, applied this principle to a situation in
his company. Some material came to him in his print
shop which was of exceptionally high quality. The
printer who had done this job was a new employee who
had been having difficulty adjusting to the job. His supervisor
was upset about what he considered a negative
attitude and was seriously thinking of terminating his
services.
When Mr. Roper was informed of this situation, he
personally went over to the print shop and had a talk
with the young man. He told him how pleased he was
with the work he had just received and pointed out it
was the best work he had seen produced in that shop for
some time. He pointed out exactly why it was superior
and how important the young man s contribution was to
the company,
Do you think this affected that young printer s attitude
toward the company? Within days there was a complete
turnabout. He told several of his co-workers about the
conversation and how someone in the company really
appreciated good work. And from that day on, he was a
loyal and dedicated worker.
What Mr. Roper did was not just flatter the young
printer and say You re good. He specifically pointed
out how his work was superior. Because he had singled
out a specific accomplishment, rather than just making
general flattering remarks, his praise became much more
meaningful to the person to whom it was given. Everybody
likes to be praised, but when praise is specific, it
comes across as sincere - not something the other person
may be saying just to make one feel good.
Remember, we all crave appreciation and recognition,
and will do almost anything to get it. But nobody wants
insincerity. Nobody wants flattery.
Let me repeat: The principles taught in this book will
work only when they come from the heart. I am not
advocating a bag of tricks. I am talking about a new way
of life.
Talk about changing people. If you and I will inspire
the people with whom we come in contact to a realization
of the hidden treasures they possess, we can do far
more than change people. We can literally transform
them.
Exaggeration? Then listen to these sage words from
William James, one of the most distinguished psychologists
and philosophers America has ever produced:
Compared with what we ought to be, we are only half
awake. We are making use of only a small part of our physical
and mental resources. Stating the thing broadly, the
human individual thus lives far within his limits. He possesses
powers of various sorts which he habitually fails to use.
Yes, you who are reading these lines possess powers
of various sorts which you habitually fail to use; and one
of these powers you are probably not using to the fullest
extent is your magic ability to praise people and inspire
them with a realization of their latent possibilities.
Abilities wither under criticism; they blossom under
encouragement. To become a more effective leader of
people, apply . . .
PRINCIPLE 6
Praise the slightest improvement and
praise
every improvement. Be hearty in
your
approbation and lavish in your
praise.
7
GIVE A DOG A GOOD
NAME
What do you do when a person who has been a good
worker begins to turn in shoddy work? You can fire him
or her, but that really doesn t solve anything. You can
berate the worker, but this usually causes resentment.
Henry Henke, a service manager for a large truck dealership
in Lowell, Indiana, had a mechanic whose
work had become less than satisfactory. Instead of
bawling him out or threatening him, Mr. Henke called
him into his office and had a heart-to-heart talk with
him.
Bill, he said, you are a fine mechanic. You have
been in this line of work for a good number of years. You
have repaired many vehicles to the customers satisfaction.
In fact, we ve had a number of compliments about
the good work you have done. Yet, of late, the time you
take to complete each job has been increasing and your
work has not been up to your own old standards. Because
you have been such an outstanding mechanic in
the past, I felt sure you would want to know that I am
not happy with this situation, and perhaps jointly we
could find some way to correct the problem.
Bill responded that he hadn t realized he had been
falling down in his duties and assured his boss that the
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