Find a FAN - Become Someone Else's

The other day a good friend wrote to me, "I'm such a fan." She wasn't talking about a new movie or the object you unfold and wave back and forth to cool off.

She was talking about me - about my ideas.

Wow. I have a fan. What a rush! I felt so good when I read that. It made me feel supported, valued - important.

It also gave me a lot of energy. I felt so empowered to go do more of the same stuff she was "a fan" of. And it has made me realize how important it is to have someone in one's life who is enthusiastic and loyal.  

Ok, I'm sure there are those thinking, "I don't need someone else to validate me - I don't care what others think of me." If you are one of those blessed self-contained and confident individuals I have other advice for you:

Go be someone else's fan.

Yup. Go find someone else's work that you admire and TELL them. Tell them how much joy, insight, or whatever-other-great- emotion it gives you. Then you will not only be increasing their energy to do great work, but putting good karma out there in these otherwise scary times. Well, so I'm not 100% sure about the karma, but I do know that when people hear positive things about their work or share it with others - EVERYONE benefits in the end.

And I'm not the only one who thinks so. Tom Rath and Donald Clifton (Gallup Chairman) wrote a great book about all this too - "How Full is Your Bucket? Positive Strategies for Work and Life"  They use the metaphor of filling up a bucket. 

Bucket or fan - the metaphor doesn't really  matter. Just look at all the shows full of people screaming that "THEY HAVE TALENT". YouTube is full of people looking for fans. 

But you don't have to go on the Internet to find someone worthy. Look around you - at your friends, neighbors, co-workers (or family members!) and I bet you'll find someone worthy of your admiration.  

And you just might find that someone else is YOUR fan.  Trust me - it's a great feeling.