Have you used the power clap? You’re at the long banquet (associated with FFA in my mind) and they ask the crowd to use one simple clap, in rhythm, to recognize each individual name listed. What about the power word?                     

What are the power words we are using (or not using) in our work every day? Michelle Gielan’s book Broadcasting Happiness uses data to show how positive words, stories, and mindsets actually change business, educational, and health outcomes. She includes many scientific studies illustrating that.

One shows that word choice can actually change us physically and mentally.

Let’s try some word association. Researchers had college students do a word puzzle. One group had words like gray, wrinkle, wise, Florida, bingo. Notice anything? Those words are all associated with age. Another group had neutral words. They recorded the students leaving, and those from the “elderly” group were actually walking slower!

What does that look like at the farm every day? Think about your morning meeting. Is it “Gosh, all this rain is making things difficult,” “I know we’re all tired,“ or “I’m getting too old for this?” Or is it, “This rain is a gift that will pay off later,” “I’m thankful you’re here with us today,” or “We’re going to rock and roll today.”

This simple exercise can change the course of your business day by day, then year by year and so on. Sometimes the power word that someone needs to hear is an apology or a simple thank you.

What are your power words and what positive results do they bring?

Davon Cook is a family business consultant at Pinion. Reach Davon at [email protected]. The opinions of the author are not necessarily those of Farm Futures or Farm Progress.