|
 While attending Eagle Rock High School, I had entirely new concepts brought into my life after I read the book entitled, How to Win Friends and Influence People. It was written by a man named, Dale Carnegie, It was hugely popular and did much good for many people. A boy who attended my school had also read the book and he, too, was excited about trying out the author's recommendations.
After we did so, we went from being well-liked to perhaps the most popular boy and girl on campus. It has had a profound effect on the rest of my existence and I am most thankful to Mr. Carnegie for his enlightened teachings. (If any readers feel so inclined, I would recommend obtaining this book and following its precepts.) Here are three of the changes I made in my life as a consequence of following the teachings in his book.
1. Names: Remembering names has always been a challenge for me. He recommends we learn to do this because, he says, this is the sweetest word a person can hear. It helps to associate the name with something familiar. colorful and unusual.
 It was working well until I had an incident which backfired on me, which I will now explain: I kept forgetting the name of a woman I met regularly at church. Her last name was ”Dorsett.” So, I pictured her wearing a bright red satin corset with red ribbons. Having this set in my mind I felt I was ready to introduce her to my friends. When the time came to do so, all I could think of was a girdle! I kept thinking: “Myrtle? Turtle? Fertile?" I finally had to give up and admit I had forgotten her name again. This made me try even harder to master this skill.
2. Compliments: Paying sincere compliments has blessed my life. How?I have learned to look for good in people. After all, everyone has at least one asset. I have made it a Happy Habit to look for good in all people I meet when complimenting them, I try to not be too lavish. I keep it short, to the point and subdued. If important to do so, I will also compliment them privately.
3. Speaker: By following his advice, I went from being a very average speaker to a professional who received as high as one thousand dollars per hour.
Yes, I found it advantageous to learn and teach how to win friends!
(To print this page, click
here for pdf version. If you don't see the new page,
you will need Adobe
Acrobat Reader. ) |
