Appreciativeness; It’s a Good Thing
By Ed Rigsbee
(573 words)
Appreciating others is something we
need to keep in the forefront of our thinking. While showing that
appreciation can sometimes be elusive; personal awareness of the
challenge goes a long way toward the resolution. Everyone wants
relationship ROI; in order to get, you must give.
Friends
Sharing
One of the things that I love about
speaking professionally is that I get to meet, and keep in touch with,
great folks from all around the world. The president of a good sized
contracting company from
South Carolina
recently sent me this story suggesting that it went along with advice
that I offered at his industry’s recent annual meeting:
When
I was a kid, my mom liked to make breakfast food for dinner every now
and then. And I remember one night in particular when she had made
breakfast after a long, hard day at work. On that evening so long ago,
my mom placed a plate of eggs, and sausage and extremely burned
biscuits in front of my dad. I remember waiting to see if anyone
noticed! Yet all my dad did was reach for his biscuit, smile at my mom
and ask me how my day was at school. I don't remember what I told him
that night, but I do remember watching him smear butter and jelly on
that biscuit and eat every bite!
When
I got up from the table that evening, I remember hearing my mom
apologize to my dad for burning the biscuits. And I'll never forget
what he said: "Honey, I love burned biscuits." Later that
night, I went to kiss Daddy good night and I asked him if he really
liked his biscuits burned. He wrapped me in his arms and said,
"Your Momma put in a hard day at work today and she's real tired.
And besides - a little burnt biscuit never hurt anyone!"
Admit
Guilt
Culpability is an uncomfortable
relative, however like all relatives, must be acknowledged. I, Ed
Rigsbee, must admit some personal guilt here. After reading this
story, I instantly thought about a comment I recently made to my wife
after she overcooked some cornbread muffins one recent morning—my
bad! The important thing to keep in mind is that we will all make
relationship mistakes; it is inevitable! The question is simply this,
“Have you made enough Relationship Bank Deposits to cover your
withdrawals?” And trust me; my comment cost me a big time
withdrawal.
Be
Mindful and Keep Perspective
The story above, in my opinion,
illustrates appreciativeness at its best. Do (we, you, I) appreciate
all the large and small things that our special someone does for
us—even the effort and the intent? This is something of which to be
always mindful.
Another important element in this story
is that the husband kept things in perspective. When you think about
it, a crusty biscuit really is no big deal. However, opening one’s
mouth in the situation could be. By putting the situation in
perspective, realizing the wife’s exhaustion and intent, even when
the implementation was not as successful as usual—the intent is
really what mattered. The wife made the effort! How many times in your
relationship have you failed to even make an effort? I sure know I’m
guilty in this area.
I truly believe that appreciativeness
of others can bridge many deep relationship valleys and help to climb
difficult relationship peaks. Make your Relationship Bank Deposits
today.
Copyright 2010 Ed
Rigsbee
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Ed Rigsbee, CSP, for over two
decades, as the speaker on relationship ROI has been helping business individuals and organizations of
all sizes to grow their market through smart alliance
relationships--while at the same time helping individuals to develop
what he calls Relationship Glue for their personal lives. He
is also the author of PartnerShift-How to Profit from the
Partnering Trend and The Art of Partnering. Rigsbee has
over 1,500 hard-copy published articles to his credit and is a
regular keynote presenter at corporate and trade association
conferences teaching North America how to access their Collaborative
Advantage through the steps he shares in his writing and
lectures. You can access all Ed's Web Sites and Blogs through www.rigsbee.com.
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