We all could use a compliment. Last week, my mom called me and left me a voice mail telling me about the Kitchen Design store she went to and how several of the people who worked there knew who I was and how they had nice things to say about me. I’m 41; my mom is 71; you’d think my days of getting compliments from my mom would be over. And you’d think that they wouldn’t have much of an impact on me. Well, wrong on both accounts.

I love it when my mom calls me and I have watched her spread her positive words of encouragement to people for years. 41 years, to be exact. There’s a great lesson there. And that lesson is never underestimate the power of a compliment. Make it a good, specific one, but compliment people on what they do well. Don’t use them so often they lose their impact but be a leader who consistently tells people what they did well and you’ll see a difference in your organization, on your team, or even at home! You never know what those little words of appreciation can do for someone.

Gotta run, I’m going to call my wife and tell her thanks for all her help in the past week. Those of you who know me well know my wife is the brains behind the Grunder Family! And I challenge you to do the same for someone who has made a difference in your life right now…..not tomorrow or next week—right now!

Most who receive this weekly Great Idea are either Entrepreneurs or work with Entrepreneurs. This week I want to share a fabulous article from the MIT Sloan Review:

http://sloanreview.mit.edu/business-insight/articles/2009/5/5157/trust-me/

This is one of the better articles I have shared with you in the last year. It is full of all kinds of great points, many very simple, but very practical, which is exactly how I like them.  Let me know your thoughts below.

Talk to you next week.

Hello…this week’s Great Idea is pretty simple. I just want you to read this excellent piece from The New York Times.

I think it has a lot of applicable ideas for every small business owner and leader in our country. What do you think of it? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Leave me a comment.

PS – Don’t forget, you can still sign up for GROW! 2010 which will be February 18-20, 2010, in Dayton, Ohio.

My great idea for the week is for you to buy my friend Larry Winget’s new book Your Kids Are Your Own Fault. It’s a book every parent in America ought to read. I read it and I loved it. First of all, if you’re thin-skinned, don’t even think of reading it. Larry always tells it like it is. And this book is no different. Larry describes his book pretty well below. But let me say this. I believe that the greatest responsibility we all have as parents is to show our kids right from wrong and instill a sense of purpose in them. There seems to be some great mystery out there about what it takes to be a good parent. And you know what? It’s really not that difficult or hard to understand. I could go on and on about the stories and the common sense that Larry shares in his new book. Whether it’s Larry telling his neighbor who has a “Drive slow, kids at play” sign on the street that he will drive the speed limit on the street but that he needs to not have kids playing in the street. Or it’s Larry telling the story of his young son motivating him when he was broke by telling him what the motivational speaker they just listened to said which was, “You can do anything you want to do.”  I know you will enjoy this book. It’s funny, practical and worth the time to sit and read it.

By all means buy the book for you and any young parent you know. It just might wake them up. Books have changed my life; you need to let them change your life.

“A dollar put into a book and a book mastered might change the whole course of a boy’s life. It might easily be the beginning of the development of leadership that would carry the boy far in service to his fellow men.”
-Henry Ford

“Books can take a person all over the world – a library card will take you farther than a driver’s license.”
-Rueben Martinez

Your Kids Are Your Own Fault:
A Guide For Raising Responsible, Productive Adults

Straight-talking, best selling Pitbull of Parenting Larry Winget says “This is not a fix your kid book. It’s a fix the way you parent book. You owe it to your kids to parent with a plan!”

My other books have all been pretty good books that I am proud of. But this is an IMPORTANT book. It is the best thing I have ever done and I know it can make a real difference in your own family. Our society is in crisis and it is because of bad parenting. Read the quotes and the preface and introduction and see what you think about my approach.

Find out more by clicking:
http://www.larrywinget.com/yourkids.html

Again, here is the information on the book:

Larry Winget
Your Kids Are Your Own Fault: A Guide For Raising Responsible, Productive Adults came out December 24th. To find out more and read the preface and introduction go to http://yourkidsareyourownfault.com/.