I received a delightful note from a subscriber recently:

“Hey Jeremy, Just wanted to let you know I thought this post was way awesome. Such good stuff. Almost too much good stuff. Loved it. Thanks for sharing…”

I was amazed to see how this simple expression of appreciation affected me: What a boost of confidence! What invigoration, and encouragement to keep chipping away at my craft.

There is incredible power in a simple compliment.

Lately I’ve been preoccupied with the question of what an individual can do to spark their own creativity; but it’s worthwhile to consider how we can spark one another’s as well. It only took ~20 seconds for this person to craft a thoughtful note that spurred me on. On an impact per minute basis, I bet it’s one of the highest-ROI activities that person conducted all week, though I doubt they even thought to calculate the return, so selfless was the gesture.

It struck me that I have that same power, too: I can spur someone else on in their practice. I’m planning to pay it forward and encourage others I know to keep going, to stick with it, to let them know their efforts aren’t wasted.

Appreciation costs so little to share, but can have a profound impact.

One simple question to ask to amplify your creative ROI: what’s one thing I can appreciate in someone else?

Related: Set An Output Commitment

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