THE POWER OF PRAISE

After writing my last post, I realized that I wanted to recreate something from my past that really nurtured me and was a stimulus package all by itself. My email from Kevin Delaney will be a part of that effort, as will this comment from my new friend in England, Internet entrepreneur and unique character, Barry Dunlop:

Hi Jerry

Are you the same Jerry who created the Moneylove program on Nightingale-Conant ?

I believe you are. Just wanted you to know what a profound effect that program had on my life - liberating / life enhancing

Looks like you have been living an "interesting" life

Would love to know what you are up to now

best wishes

Barry

What these two emails, the one from my July 8th post, and this one, reminded me of was my

Compliment Bulletin Board. I often talked about this tool in my workshops and on my tapes. It was using the often-researched power of praise to energize, motivate, stimulate, and activate

one's creative mind and success momentum.

And we all get compliments for various things we say or do or accomplish. What I suggest is that when someone pays you a compliment that really stands out, that really feels good, you ask them to put it in writing. And then you post it up on a Compliment Bulletin Board.

I am printing those complimentary emails, plus a few others, and starting a new Compliment Bulletin Board on my office wall. You could also, I suppose, figure a way to carry a portable version around with you. In the past, when I had them up on my wall, I would often find myself glancing at them, to remind myself that other people responded positively to my presence in the world. It sounds simple and maybe even insignificant, but it's not, not by a long shot. In an increasingly dehumanized society, many have lost the ability to articulate praise, so when they do pay a meaningful compliment, it can have an even more potent effect.

I am now preparing a report on some new prosperity strategies, plus a few powerful ones from the past. The Compliment Bulletin Board will definitely be included. You could probably also easily figure out how to have a virtual version on your computer, a special folder you can open on your desktop whenever you need a burst of inspiration or encouragement. It works better than any drug without any of the side effects.

And finally, the Social Media sites like Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, do have a lot of people saying a lot of nice things about other people. But sometimes these compliments are rather bland and boring, on the order of: "That was nice." "Good for you." "I like what you say."

C'mon now, folks, a little more creativity and thoughtfulness, please! These are like group think fortune cookie messages. Try to come up with individual compliments that someone would be proud to put up on their own Compliment Bulletin Board.

One of my all-time favorites was from the actress Linda Gray. Someone had given her a set of my 1980s affirmation cards called Seminar-In-A-Package (which I may reproduce at some point).

She wrote me a note that said, "Jerry, you have made a positive dent in my life."

I had never heard that expression before, and put it on my board along with a picture I ordered from her agency, showing her as Sue-Ellen on Dallas. Another one up on my board was from a woman who came up to me after a talk I gave and just handed me a little folded up note. When I got home and read it, it said, "You have the sweetest eyes I have ever seen." I don't think anyone had ever complimented me on my eyes before (or since--it never came up during my years at Folsom State Prison). Now I think I'm going to use my sweet eyes to proofread this, then go make some breakfast.

Praise be,

Jerry

And by the way, if you want to contact me, you can do so directly at jerrygillies@gmail.com

and ask for information on my healthy dark chocolate business opportunity, or my upcoming revised edition of Moneylove, or to be on the list for a free preview report this summer.