— To follow is a bullet of wisdom on leadership. It comes from Tom’s rifle, named Shot, who has seen it all. You’ll get the drift by clicking Blog in the menu at www.tomnewhouse.com. —
“NOTHING IMPROVES MY HEARING LIKE PRAISE.” As a single shot rifle, I got plenty of feedback—after every shot. Sometimes, my so-called marksman, criticized me. That hurt, but I took it in stride. Sometimes I was praised; I took it in pride. Do you hear the difference? With the latter, I was all in. I wanted—and needed—the bolstering. And with it, I performed better.
Well, I’m just a dumb, ole rifle, but I will wager that people are like me when it comes to praise. Criticism stifles. Praise enlivens. They hear praise, even if they pretend not to. Yep, they hear it coming, and they are all ears. Later, they play the record again and again. Seems like a good leader could use this reality to one’s advantage: Stimulate effective listening with praise. Better, when listening, insert some praise to keep the other talking…and thinking.