Tweet

What provokes you to give back?

Written by: Russell DeWitt

Article Overview: This article delves into a study conducted 37 years ago on what actually motivated people to provide assitance to another. Although almost four decades old, the tale is fascinating. This is quick, simple, powerful, and provides a small group discussion for small staff meetings.

What provokes you to give back?

A 1972 study tried to determine what it would take to motivate one person to reach out and give back. Researchers placed a dime in the return slot of a shopping mall payphone (remember those?). Just moments after the unsuspecting shopper discovered the dime, a man would drop a folder full of papers nearby. What were the results? 84% of those who discovered a dime would stop and help the man who dropped his papers. Fewer than 5% of those who did not find a dime would help the man.

James M. Barrie wrote, "Those who bring sunshine into the lives of others, cannot keep it from themselves."

Team exercise:

• "Can you recall a time when one small act provoked you to do something nice?"
• "Can you recall a time when someone took time to thank you for something you hardly remember doing?"
• "Your challenge today is to do three small acts of kindness for an unsuspecting person; whether it is a co-worker, a customer, or business partner."

Related Articles
  What to Do When a Prospective Client Doesn't Respond
  Confidence Equals Sales Success.
  Live Consultant Thinking: Some Essence of Managerial Skills
  Prospective Prospects ~ To Mail or Not to Mail, That is THE Question
  Power People - Control People

Article Tags: acts of kindness, business partner, co worker, james m barrie, li li, nbsp, p james, shopping mall, small acts of kindness, sunshine, team exercise, ul, unsuspecting person, unsuspecting shopper



Related Forum Posts
Re: Creating backlinks by getting your website valued? - Hi Michelle, It’s my pleasure, that’s what I love about this forum, there is so much goodwill and sharing of experiences and tips that I love to keep coming back every day because I learn so much more than I could ever give back but it’s nice to get a thank you, LOL, regards, Mal.
Re: Welcome, Mal Tindle, our new forum moderator - [quote="Mal Tindle":prezrom5]Hi GT, I am now back in wet and miserable UK and missing that feeling already but I am now back in the saddle and not feeling so guilty anymore. regards Mal.[/quote:prezrom5] Hi Mal, You should never feel guilty about taking a bit of time out. It is a great way to recharge you batteries and will give you more energy and enthusiasm when you get back to your business. MichelleJ
Re: Social Media Works If You Do It Right... - Hi GT, Thanks for your advice, I will give it a try and get back to you, Mal.
Re: Do Your Prospects / Customers Trust You? - All good points everyone and I'm learning as I read through. Gaining trust takes a lot of time and even if you're an expert or a startup in the field that you're promoting or excelling with, still, you have to put enough attention on how you'll be able to establish value among your prospects and customers by giving them what they need (contents, contacts, ventures, etc) and not only by offering them services and selling them products. Thus, customers do trust us with the way we give them satisfaction first before they give something back in return.
Re: Twitter Woes.... Whats slowing you down? - Hi GT, Many thanks for getting back to me and explaining things. I will give it a try and see how it goes, I am not a prolific tweeter but I am hoping I don't have to be, LOL, thanks again, Mal.


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Tweet

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

The Right Job - Part Five 'Compensation'

How do you keep it together on a daily basis?

Make Small Commitments. Get Big Changes.

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.