Unlock the power of encouragement in your life!

Remember how you felt when someone said an encouraging word to you? What got us thinking about this was we recently watched an interview of a well-known psychologist and author, Jordan Peterson.

During the interview, Peterson was asked his thoughts on a variety of topics. He was very poised and articulate. Then, suddenly, he became very quiet, and tearful, when the topic of people who feel alienated came up. When asked what prompted that emotion, he responded in a trembling voice, “It’s really something to see constantly how many people are dying for lack of an encouraging word – and how easy it is to provide that.”

It was a very powerful moment in the interview. We were both touched by his deep conviction of what the power of encouragement, or lack thereof, can have in a person’s life. It made us think of moments in our lives when we have been gifted with words of encouragement from others, and how it made us feel.

Perhaps you are remembering moments when you were told some encouraging words that had a profound effect on your life. Maybe the words were from a teacher, a friend or family member, a boss or coworker. As John Maxwell says, “A word of encouragement from a teacher to a child can change a life. A word of encouragement from a spouse can save a marriage. A word of encouragement from a leader can inspire a person to reach his/her potential.”

So, let’s explore further how encouragement can help others and ourselves.

Encouragement can be contagious.

When you encourage others, you give them hope and motivation. You may never know the impact that your thoughtful words can have on those who hear them. Sometimes those words can be life changing for them. Like ripples on a lake, when your encouraging words have a positive effect on a person’s life, that person can then also positively affect others, and so on.

Encouragement can give a sense of purpose.

When you see how your encouraging words positively affect others, it can motivate you to do it even more. As you consciously encourage others it gives you a sense of purpose and help give even more meaning to your life. Simply taking time to truly listen to someone else’s thoughts and concerns is, in itself, a gift to that person.

Encouraging others can help you feel happier.

We can’t help but feel good when we hear how our encouraging words have helped someone else. It can be an antidote to sadness. Mark Twain understood this when he said, “The best way to cheer yourself up is to try to cheer somebody else up.” When we are happy, we tend to expand our outlook from just ourselves, to include caring for others.

Encouragement can help to improve health.

Studies have shown that people who take time to volunteer have less hypertension (high blood pressure) than people who don’t volunteer. Helping others also can raise your self-esteem and confidence. Volunteers suffer less from anxiety and stress. Also, we tend to make better decisions when we have less stress in our lives.

Being an encourager makes you more attractive to others.

This makes sense. Think of yourself. Would you rather be around people who are always down, depressed and constantly complaining about life? Or would you rather be around people who are positive and encouraging to others? We find our closest friends are those who are positive. Katharine Butler Hathaway puts it this way, “There is nothing better than the encouragement of a good friend.” An adage comes to mind, “If you want to have a friend, be a friend.”

We’ve talked about some of the benefits, to others and ourselves, of offering encouragement. So, how can we do this?

We live in a high-tech world where we can be constantly bombarded with texts and emails. What would it feel like if you were to receive some simple, unexpected words of appreciation or encouragement from someone you know and respect? Chances are it would feel pretty good!

What about you? You probably know of some people who could use a little encouragement right now. Why not take some time this week to give them a call, meet with them, or send them a short note of encouragement. It will probably make them feel good. Maya Angelou said, “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” And it will make you feel good, too.

Chanhassen MN residents, Doug and Lynn Nodland are success coaches and owners of The Balance Center in Excelsior. Contact them at WeCare@SharingLifesLessons.com

© Doug and Lynn Nodland 2022 Articles and videos may be shared in their entirety with attribution.