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Kathy Henderson
Kathy Henderson

By Kathy Henderson, Director of Economic Development, CCEDC

Over the years, I have read numerous books and articles by consultants on how to become more successful.  Brian Tracy is one of my favorites.  

We are often asked at CCEDC “how did we become so successful”.  The answer is surprisingly easy….we honestly care about the people and businesses we serve.  

I came across an article by Mr. Tracy awhile back that I felt exemplifies the way that we conduct business here.  This particular article adds another layer by telling us that making others feel important satisfies the deepest subconscious cravings of human nature.  

Mr. Tracy asks his audiences: “What percentage of the time are people emotional, and what percentage of the time are people logical?  There can be many schools of thought, but the true answer is that people are 100 percent emotional.  They decide emotionally and then justify it logically.  But, emotion comes first. 

Everything that happens in your life affects you emotionally in some way. Everything that affects you makes you happy or sad, motivated or unmotivated, loving or angry, fearful or confident. Nothing is neutral”.

How does this translate to being successful in business?  

Mr. Tracy advises us to become a relationship expert. He says: “We are positively affected by people who say and do things that make us feel important and valuable.  Everything a person does or says that raises our self-esteem causes us to like and respect ourselves more.  As a result, we feel positive toward the person who is making us feel better about ourselves. 

Your job is to become a “relationship expert” by developing the habits of speaking and acting that make people feel important and valuable. When you develop the habit of doing and saying things that cause people to feel good about themselves, their lives, their work and their families, all kinds of doors will open for you. People will like and respect you and want to be around you. They’ll want to hire you, promote you, work for you, and buy from you. They’ll accept your influence and leadership and give you power in your work and community”.

The starting point of becoming a relationship expert is to develop the habit of practicing the golden rule in everything you do with everyone you meet. The golden rule says, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

This principle is so simple — yet so powerful — that if everyone were to apply it, the world would transform overnight.

Building a successful business relies on the relationships that you develop with your customers.  Make them feel special, show them that you really care about their needs, take the extra step to help them, and you will find that you are creating loyal customers who will come back time and time again.