My son Ahmad’s teacher is a softly spoken gentleman; he can get him to do a lot of hard work. The other day I watched him teach and there I discovered his secret; Constant praise. Every move Ahmad made the teacher commended him, spurred and encouraged him. When the lesson was over he showered a volley of praise and told him “you are fantastic”. Just imagine how this praise will boost the little boy’s morale.
We are all so hungry to hear something good about ourselves. One of my senior manager has understood this human yearning for praise – so whenever anyone comes into his office he will find something to praise. The other day he spotted my striped tie and smilingly praised my taste for smartness.
The power of praising is tremendous, it raises hope, encourages, makes us feel good and capable of achieving. It also shows that the other person is valuing and appreciating me. This is not a mere feel good factor in fact it builds trust between the two people. praising involves kindness and the desire to appreciate the other-highly developed qualities of character.
“Praising someone or something good” – say the psychologists is a sure sign of sanity. Perhaps that is why the holy book of Islam the glorious Quran teaches “always say good things to people”. Make people happy with words and deeds.
