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Does positive reinforcement make you want to do more?
Posted: 8:46 am
November 1st, 2007
Post a comment
Vladville, Web 2.0

Last night I was bouncing a couple of emails with a fairly influential person in the small business sector, very good friend as well because he somehow managed to be more hated by Microsoft than I am, something that definitely needs an award of some sort (err, Tim… SBSBBC?)

Anyhow, we got on the subject of positive reinforcement, after yesterday’s fanmail post about LiveArchive. His comment was that it “makes me want to do more” and while I can see how that positive reinforcement applies, I have to say that over the past year my “helping the masses” spirit has been all but completely shattered (to be outlined in “Why Susan Bradley is a much better person than I am”)

Here is the thing I rarely talk about because, well, it’s my own damn fault. Not a day passes by that I don’t severely regret helping some people in this business. Why? Because some of the people that I have helped the most have repaid me the least, and/or have taken what I have provided/taught them to my competitors.

Thing is, I love to help and thats just the kind of person that I am. But having been stabbed from every angle imaginable I am finding myself asking my wife to talk me out of some of the projects because the majority of the people out there are not like me and they only look out for themselves. Why go out seeking abuse?

Finally, I look at feedback from this blogs survey and I finally understand who the audience is and why things like Vladfire and SBS Show were so popular and why people were so supportive of them – because the people that really got behind it were not greedy would-be entrepreneurs but actual IT professionals, people with jobs, people that just appreciated hearing and seeing the experts and reading how (I) some overcame the associated bullshit of being in the technology business.

Speaking of overcoming… Today is November 1st.. I’ve promised you a little something-something, I hope you are pleasantly surprised with what we’ve been able to do over the past two weeks.

3 Comments

Mike Clemmons |

When you help people are you expecting something in return? or are you helping people just to help them?



vlad |

Mike,

It depends on the context. For external facing things like Vladville, SBS Show, Vladfire and other things I do in the public that I would do anyhow - no, I don’t expect any ROI because they are not done to gain friends/partners/customers.

However, when someone eats up my time on the phone, when they ask me for help with their Exchange and SBS boxes, when I organize one meeting after another to help their business and make connections then yeah, I expect a little gratitude beyond that of just general “well, he just does it because he is a vendor” type of stuff because I really would like to meet a vendor that does free support for third party products..

I think what seems to get lost in the common courtesy out there is that just because someone doesn’t make you pay for every effort you make doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do something for them if you receive a benefit from their work.

-Vlad



Mike Clemmons |

Vlad,
Thank you for making this distinction. People calling you up for help is very different than you offering help (i.e. sbsshow, vladfire, etc.)

Mike



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