It seems like we’re always paying people. Perhaps it’s the grocery store for our recent purchase, or maybe it’s the waiter or waitress at the restaurant. We pay the utility company, the bank, the cellphone company and many other people and organizations as part of going about our daily lives. Regardless of that, I’m going to suggest that you cause something truly beneficial to happen this week by finding additional people to pay.
I can already hear the response, “The only thing finding more people to pay is going to cause is me going broke!” Don’t worry. I’m not suggesting you find new creditors to send monthly payments to. Far from it! In fact, I’m not even suggesting there be a monetary exchange at all. What I am suggesting is that you find people to whom you can pay a genuine compliment.
Most people enjoy receiving a sincere compliment. I know I do! So why not leverage our capacity to brighten someone elses’s day with a sincere compliment by looking for opportunities to do so?
We can all think of someone we know who has done a good job for us, or whose work we admire. Perhaps it’s someone with a remarkable skill or attitude. It can be a colleague we work with, someone whose services we use, or even a friend, family member, or a total stranger we witness doing something good.
I had a chance to do this with my veterinarian this week. He recently was successful in treating our cat for a condition she had been suffering from for quite some time. His logical, methodical approach impressed me as much as the immediate results we that saw in our cat. So when we ran into him at the store this week, I told him. I told him how impressed I was with his methodical approach and how much I appreciated the results of his efforts. After I paid him this compliment, he was all smiles. Now I’m not saying that my compliment was the highlight of his day, but based on his response, I could tell that he really appreciated hearing it.
Be on the lookout in the days ahead, and every day for that matter, for people to whom you can pay a genuine compliment. When you find them, be generous with the currency of your kind words. Let them know specifically what they’ve done, or what they do, that sparked your compliment. Also let them know what that means to you. Not only will it cause them to feel good to be paid a sincere compliment, it will also make you feel good to share some kind words with someone else.