I mentioned to you guys last week that I was lucky enough to score a copy of The Power of Nice written by two of my favorite nice people, Linda Kaplan Thaler and Robin Koval, at a used bookstore. I took some time this past rainy weekend to read a bit, and I ended up getting through the entire book in two sittings! I found myself nodding my head as I went through each section, as if Linda and Robin could see my agreement. :) The best part is knowing that they used the concept of kindness to propel themselves to immense success in their industry. So you don't need to be cutthroat. You don't need to step on others' backs. It gives me hope that I can succeed in life being good ole nice gal Melissa. The anecdotes included in the story are inspiring, including one about Linda's son's honesty which made me tear up! The book gave me some fabulous ideas for ways that my current company could approach our clients (and prospective clients) differently, and I'm going to encourage my superiors to read it as well!
There are also little "Nice Cubes," which are exercises that I may have to borrow for future NICE Assignments. I noticed one area I need to work on. The chapter about listening. I've realized throughout the last few months that I really can't help but talk about myself. I don't know if it's overcompensation for my shyness, but in conversations, someone will mention something that reminds me of a story about something in my own life. And yeah, it's good to share, but sometimes it's better to listen. Like they said in the book, I can't learn anything new if I'm not listening.
Another thing I picked up on in the book is how great it must be to work at Linda and Robin's agency. To know your superiors put such great value on kindness has to feel great. So yeah, uh, Linda and Robin, if you ever find yourself in need of a designer, you know where to find me! :)
Click here to pick up a copy for yourself!
4 comments:
Melissa, what a great picture! Thank you so much for the kind review of our book. We're so glad our stories could help inspire you as much as the ones you share on your blog inspire us every day. As we like to say, "positive impressions are like seeds," so just keep on letting kindness work for you in its own little ways and we know you can continue to accomplish big things.
Thanks ladies! You two are my heroes!
After seeing an earlier post, I purchased both the Power of Nice and the Power of Small - super books that I am delving into a little at a time. I plan to share them with my co-workers and family.
Mar-Cee-Ah, that's so great to hear! And of course, the "little-by-little" approach is something we can vouch for. We hope you enjoy reading our books as much as we enjoyed writing them and connecting with our fellow NICE folks and SMALL thinkers every day.
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