KneEmail - a devotional by Mike Benson associated with Forthright Magazine
Compliment
THE MOST FUNDAMENTAL and straightforward way of winning with people is to give them a compliment -- a sincere and meaningful word of affirmation...
If you want to make others feel like a million bucks, you've got to master this elementary skill. And it's essential that you learn to give your compliments in front of others as well as one-on-one. Why? Because that private compliment turned public, instantly and dramatically increases in value.
As commander of a $1 billion warship and a crew of 310, Mike Abrashoff used grassroots leadership to increase retention rates from 28 percent to 100 percent, reduce operating expenditures, and improve readiness. How did he do it? Among other things, he placed supreme importance on public compliments.
"The commanding officer of a ship is authorized to hand out 15 medals a year," he wrote. "I wanted to err on the side of excess, so I passed out 115." Nearly every time a sailor left his ship for another assignment, Captian Abrashoff gave him or her a medal. "Even if they hadn't been star players, they got medals in a public ceremony as long as they had done their best every day. I delivered a short speech describing how much we cherished the recipient's friendship, camaraderie, and hard work." Abrashoff wanted to make them feel good by complimenting them in front of others.
Whenever you have an opportunity to publicly praise another person, don't let it slip by. You can create those opportunities, as Captain Abrashoff did, but you can also find countless opportunities if you look for them." John Maxwell
KneEmail: "And Joses, who was also named Barnabas by the apostles (which is translated Son of Encouragement), a Levite of the country of Cyprus." Acts 4:36
Bible reading for 02.03.10: Matthew 22:1-22; Exodus 31-33
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