The BIGG Successs Show
The Two Most Powerful Words You Can Use
We interview Steve Harper, the author of The Ripple Effect. Read our show summary at find a link to Steve's site at biggsuccess.com.
Welcome to The Big Success Show. Today, we'll discuss the two most powerful words that you can use. The Big Success Show, with George and Mary Lynn. Today, we're pleased to visit with Steve Harper, author of the book The Ripple Effect, maximizing the power of relationships for your life and business. Welcome to The Big Success Show, Steve. Thank you very much. I'm happy to be here. We're thrilled to have you. Now, on your website, RippleCentral.com. We talk about the two most powerful words. What are they, Steve? Well, in my opinion, they're thank you. Yeah, I think people take them for granted, or don't use them nearly enough. Yeah, because it would seem that this is obvious, but there are several occasions where people leave that out. Absolutely. You know, with my work, I help people bridge the gap to creating bigger and better relationships. And one of the things that I think helps accelerate that process is always recognizing people that have helped you out. You know, a lot of people think that you owe them something, or you've got to do another favor in the most instances. People just want to know that you appreciate what they've done for you, and thank you as an excellent example of how you can certainly show that appreciation. And it's a personal way of letting people know that you do appreciate something that's been done for you. It's amazing to me, too, Steve. And having been in business, I know you've been in business, good help is hard to find. That's for sure. But it just amazes me how many times these days, people don't even thank you for the business that you're doing with them. It's very true. You know, one of the things that I tried to be very good at when I had my former company, which was an office technology business, was to go back to our customers and always with a heartfelt appreciation, tell them how much I truly appreciated their business and thank them for the business that they did with us. But to tell them truly, I looked at it as an honor and a privilege to have the opportunity to serve them. And what was amazing by just showing that little bit of appreciation for what business they brought to me, it was amazing how many doors of additional opportunity opened up, whether that was with their own companies or with people that would say, you know, you should be dealing with another client of mine or you should be talking with my brother-in-law, or whoever the case might be. And you know, people just, it's one of those things that they're not often thanked enough for the business that they do with companies. And when it does happen, you certainly set yourself apart from the rest of your competitors. Right, so just imagine what you do for yourself in the networking world. When you say thank you to someone who helped you make a connection, you remember people who show appreciation for the efforts that you made to help. They do, you know, for a lot of people, especially, I would imagine people that listen to your podcast, people that are running businesses that have employees, people that work for them. One of the things that is so essential and I think, you know, is necessary especially today, is that you need to be in a position to thank the people that work with you and work for you. And it doesn't necessarily mean that you have to be the business owner. It can just be that you're a coworker to somebody. When somebody does something nice for you or outside the normal scope of their business, you want to, you know, do what you can to show your appreciation for it because it really does make a difference. And when you show that appreciation, people are far more willing to continue to do those things because they appreciate that you appreciate what they do for you. Well, Steve, you've helped me understand. I have to say why Elvis was so popular because he didn't just say thank you. He said, thank you very much, thank you very much. Oh my gosh. All right. Well, Steve, will you hang on with us and share your number one secret to success? Absolutely. All right. That's coming up. Today we're talking with Steve Harper, author of the ripple effect and ripple effects all about building relationships. And one of the things he likes to talk about are the two most powerful words. Thank you. That's right. And now you're going to share your number one secret to success. What is it? It is being a resource to others, and that sort of goes in line with the thank you mentality. But one of the mantras that I've always lived my life by is a thing I call the treasure chest principle. And what the treasure chest principle basically says is that people are an unbelievable treasure chest of opportunity. If you just take the time to pick the lock, lift the lid and look at what's inside and gain a true appreciation for the people that cross your path in life. And one of the best ways and the quickest way is to build better relationships or build stronger organizations or companies is to have that resource mentality. Because I believe that people are putting your path for a very specific reason. And it's what you do to engage those people and to connect with them and to find out how you can help them without really any expectation of anything in return, but just doing it will bring multiple opportunities and have those ripples come back to you, if you will. And so, you know, the secret to my success has always been being a resource to those people. I take a special effort and take time to listen and look for opportunities to help others and miraculously, things come back to me that always tend to be more positive. And you provide a fantastic resource in your book, The Ripple Effect, and we can get a free chapter of that, correct? Yes, ma'am. You can download that from our website at www.ripplescentral.com. And you can learn about Steve's other services there as well. Absolutely. And Steve, last we forget, we'd like to thank you for being part of The Big Success Show. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Well, I truly appreciate the opportunity. It's certainly been a fun experience and I'm really glad we've connected and thank you for the opportunity. And before we go, George, let's get our big quote for the day. Quote today comes from GB Stern who said, "Silent gratitude isn't much use to anyone." So don't just think, thanks, think out loud. Ooh, I'd like to hear you say that three times real fast. No, thank you. Next time, we'll talk about three things to understand about your banker to make the loan process less intimidating. Until then, here's to your big success. [MUSIC PLAYING]