Really Caring, is REALLY Powerful.

I was having lunch with a friend of mine the other day and he stopped the conversation dead in its tracks, looked at me and said, "I gotta find a new job G, my boss just doesn't care, doesn't care about me, my career or about my growth in this company. She doesn't care and I can't believe I didn't see it until now. I feel like such a dummy."

Have you ever run into a situation like this? Have you ever heard a student, a player or an employee say, "my teacher, coach, or boss doesn't care, so why should I?". I have, and it is one of the most heart breaking things that can happen to a person no matter what the venue is. I've seen it happen to kids and adults alike. No one is immune to the destructive impact of the realization that someone who is supposed to care about them, who has said they care about them, doesn't REALLY care about them.

The effects of caring or NOT caring can be catastrophic and life altering. On the other hand the effects of REALLY caring, and showing it can move mountains.

When people know you really care, they are more apt to also care themselves. We've all heard the saying "they don't care how much you know until they know how much you care". I know it's cliche, but there is nothing more true. People who know you care are more inclined to give discretionary effort and spend extra hours on assignments, projects and preparation.

When you really care you do what needs to be done to create a win/win for all involved. When you really care about the people you work with, whether prospect, customer, colleague, or employee, you invest in them, their growth and their development. You do the little things it takes to help THEM get better. In return, you get better, and see better results.

When people know you really care, they give you the benefit of the doubt in almost every situation. They forgive you when you make mistakes. They come back to fight another day no matter what happened the day before. They follow your lead and they believe in you.

When your employees, customers, students, players and colleagues know you really care about their best interests they will give discretionary effort to help you. No matter what the circumstance. And discretionary effort is one of the most powerful forces on the planet. It's the backbone behind almost every enduring company in the world. It's what willed Steve Jobs back to Apple. And it's the difference maker in almost every startup that's every done anything memorable on the globe. Without discretionary effort, without extra hours, without extra time spent late at night and early in the morning we would not be where we are today.

When you care deeply and the people around you know it, you create influence and influence gives you power to get sh!t done. And influence is a powerful thing.