- Forever Change is a quirky DIY guide to change and personal growth. Be willing to step out of your comfort zone, and create a better you - FOREVER.
- I post here about once a week. I also have a sister site Forever Change Weight Loss.
Encouragement Is A Two Way Street
photo credit :steven damron
Today you get two posts in one. How lucky are you?
I am currently working on my weight loss site, so I may be posting here less often, writing shorter posts (or both) as I spend time getting my weight loss site up and running.
Once I get my weight loss site bedded down, I have some things to share with you about my experiences in setting up both this blog and also the weight loss site real soon, so stay tuned.
The idea for this post came from today’s post by Craig Harper A Personal Cheer Squad, where he talks about the notion of being an encourager, and how powerful the effects can be for both the person receiving the encouragement and the person receiving encouragement.
I have been spending some time over the last few months encouraging a few women with their weight loss journey and I am personally getting a lot out of it myself. I have also been on the receiving end of some encouragement by Craig and from my own experience it was a very uplifting and motivating.
Craig ran a small writing competition on his site where people submitted an article that somehow related to motivation/personal development. I was so excited when I logged into the site on 31st December 2007 and saw that I was the winner. Up until then I was still umming and ahhing over whether to start my own blog and this was probably a turning point for me.
My post was called Ignite that Spark of Belief, and this is how the article starts off -
“Life Sucks and then you Die”. The slogan on the t-shirt was not the worst I had seen but I could tell I was going to have my work cut out for me. Tony with the attitude to match the t-shirt came into my office, sat down and made no eye contact. His gaze shifted from out the window to down at the floor. Tony was 23 and had never worked since leaving school at 15.
You can read the full article here.
Whilst working with Tony I spent a lot of time encouraging him especially when he was going through some tough times. Even a little encouragement goes a long way, and for me it was a two way street. At the time I was feeling jaded and Tony helped to lift me out of that and get back on track.
How about joining in with Craig’s suggestion and commit to encouraging at least one different person every day for the next week. I would love to hear how it went so come back here and let me know or give some feedback on Craig’s site. The main thing is to give it a go and remember you lift up the person you are encouraging and you get to reap benefits for yourself. It doesn’t get much better than that!
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Encouragement to me is like receiving a hug. It makes you feel loved and appreciated. I will be encouraging a number of people over the next 3 days at a Life Coach training workshop. Will be an intense, but fun weekend.
Davinas last blog post..Bears Come Calling
All the best with your workshop Davina.
Here is a hug for you. ( )
Positive reinforcement is a beautiful thing. I try to always be optimistic and encourage people with their goals (even if I don’t to the same for myself all the time!). Sometimes, it simply takes a little bit of someone else’s energy to get another going, and if we can all learn to motivate each other what a great place this would be.
That’s not to say that constructive criticism isn’t a good thing either - some people use that as encouragement.
Best of luck on your weight loss site!
John Young | We Have Contacts last blog post..The Book And The Cover
Hi John
Constructive criticism I think generally means that person giving it cares enough about you that they want to see the best in you. So yes - it can be very encouraging. I find even just one comment left on a blog post is encouraging for me so thank you Davina and John.
Encouragement is such a powerful thing. I see this every day in practice. Having someone say “you can do this” is enough to make many clients grow and flourish.
In my personal life I’ve also joined with a group of two girlfriends to encourage each other with some exercise and health goals. We email each other daily, talk about what we’ve done and how we’re going. It’s partly accountability, but we all think each other are fab. So it’s accountability, plus understanding, support and encouragement.
Wonderful idea Leanne! I do commit to encouraging at least one different person for the next week. And I’m sure I’ll find myself changed for the better because of this process.
Lances last blog post..Simple Fun
Hi Kathryn
Your group sounds fabulous. Achievements are even sweeter when you can share them with other like minded people. It must be very rewarding to see the visible change with your clients too.
Hi Lance
Good on you. I am going to do this too. Even though I will be spending all day today indoors apart from shopping this morning I have encouraged a person whilst shopping. The young girl serving us at the supermarket market checkout was excellent helping a very elderly lady out – way beyond what other “check out chicks” would have done. When it was our turn to be served I commented on her wonderful service and she was absolutely chuffed and said I had made her day!
I can’t begin to say how much I agree that encouragement is a “two way street!” I mean, it’s absolutely motivating to see that your words of encouragement have had an impact on someone (however small that impact might be. The point is, you reached out to someone and made a connection). Heck, getting a reaction out of someone for a simple smile is motivating to me
Ribeezies last blog post..Social Networking ROI: is it worth it?
Hi Ribeezie
Reaching out is what encouragement is all about - it really does “build bridges.”