Listen and Behave Better than a Billionaire: Show Genuine Appreciation of Others to Receive Genuine Appreciation!

Good morning, Live Better than a Billionaire-a-Holics!

Are you feeling motivated this morning? I certainly hope so. I know that I am!

Before getting into the substance of this post, let me remind you of my teaching plans for this month in the Boston area:

In Brookline, Massachusetts (617-730-2700)

Course V267: Raising Capital for Your New Business on September 20 and 27 (this is the expanded version of my popular course on starting a small business and can save you a fortune in capital costs!)

Course V268: Franchising Opportunities to Start a New Business on September 21 and 28 (this is a new course to help you find the right franchise operation for you) -- This course is almost sold out!

In Newton, Massachusetts (617-559-6999)

B 2172: The 2,000 Percent Solution (creating ways to accomplish 20 times as much with the same time and resources: It's like cloning yourself 20 times! -- see www.2000percentsolution.com for background)

I also offer individual tutorials and seminars on these subjects year around.

Introduction

How often do you feel really appreciated?

Most of us would say, "Not often enough."

Interviews with billionaires suggest that they have this problem more than most: They often perceive that people are more interested in their money than in them.

Observations

Think of a time when you felt really appreciated.

When I dredge up such a memory, it usually has these components:

1. Somebody took a lot of time to do something for me.

2. What they did was something that I cared about.

3. They expressed their reason for doing this in a way that made me feel good.

Here's an example. My mother made it her habit to save any little thing that marked key moments in my youth, from the announcement in the newspaper of my second birthday to my letter of acceptance from Harvard. If there's anything significant that she missed, I can't think of what it is. She took all of that material, and neatly arranged each item into a series of large scrapbooks with hinges so I can take the items out. As she put the scrapbooks together, she would show me what she was doing and ask my preferences about how she did it. She would tell me that she was doing this to help me remember that I could do anything I tried and she wanted to encourage me to try more. I felt like the King of the world!

Recommendations

So how would you behave towards and feel about someone who made you feel so appreciated?

I am sure you'd want to reciprocate and do something to appreciate them!

That means that you can feel appreciated more often if you start showing genuine appreciation for others more often.

What's a good strategy?

1. Explain to people that you want to show more appreciation for them because they mean so much to you. Ask people to tell you about when they felt the most appreciated in their lives. As you do, share with them what makes you feel the most appreciated . . . as an example.

2. Take copious notes on what they tell you.

3. Describe to them what you think are the key elements of what it takes for them to feel greatly appreciated.

4. Take notes on what they say that's different from you thought you heard.

5. Use what you learned to show them your greatest appreciation.

6. Ask them to tell you what you did that worked and what could have been improved.

7. Show them your greatest appreciation again and ask for more feedback. Keep repeating this step until you're delighted with how well it's going, and they are showering you with enormous appreciation of the kind you crave.

N.B. As you can tell, I'm experimenting with color. Let me know what you like and what I should change about my use of color.

Please let me know what else you would like to learn, and I'll do my best to help in future blog entries.

If you are new to this blog, be sure to check out the updated table of contents entry that I posted on September 14. It will help you find earlier entries that may be of interest. I'll update this table of contents every week or so for your convenience.

August 31 was the most frequently read blog entry to date. Be sure to check it out!

Thanks so much for your support of this blog. I'm delighted that so many tens of thousands of people have made this blog part of their regular reading habit!

If you like this blog, please let others know who might also enjoy it. E-mailing your favorite post to them is a great idea. My post on saving money on heating costs this winter is a good choice. You can find it at http://livebetterthanabillionaireon5dollars.blogspot.com/2005_08_30_livebetterthanabillionaireon5dollars_archive.html/.

Thank you to my many friends, students, clients and blog readers who are spreading the good word about this blog.

If you are visiting today because someone invited you, I'm delighted to meet you! Let's stay in touch.

Remember to check out

Live Spiritually Better than a Billionaire at http://livespirituallybetterthanabillionaire.blogspot.com/,

Be More Successful than a Billionaire at http://bemoresuccessfulthanabillionaire.blogspot.com/,

Enjoy Mansions Better than a Billionaire at http://enjoymansionsbetterthanabillionaire.blogspot.com/,

Enjoy Football Better than a Billionaire at http://enjoyfootballbetterthanabillionaire.blogspot.com/ and

Be a World Hero Better than a Billionaire at http://beaworldherobetterthanabillionaire.blogspot.com/.

May God bless you.

Donald W. Mitchell, Your Dream Concierge

Copyright 2005 Donald W. Mitchell