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The office complex management sort of frowns upon pets but everyone in our vicinity adores her. I think the paragraph above explains why. When she's with you, she gives you her full and loving attention. She is totally in the moment, focusing on every word you say, as well as the way you say it. She even gives feedback (via the speed of her wagging tail) according to your intonation and pitch level. Of course, her ultimate goal is food (trust me, that *is* Maddy's ultimate goal). And she seems to see me as an easy "mark"; figuring - and, I suspect, mentally imaging - that, if she keeps looking at me like she is right now, I'll give her a goody, which, I eventually do every time (even though I keep telling her this is the very last one and absolutely no more....and I really do mean it!) :-). Apparently, she also seems to think I'm a great guy, licking and cuddling up to me after each time I feed her something. Hmmm. (There's an old saying that "behavior that gets rewarded, gets repeated." But, as I think that about her, I suspect she's thinking the same thing about me.) :-) So, let's see; she is goal oriented. She treats people kindly. She focuses on the person lovingly and intently. She is graciously persistent. She understands the power of rewarding positive behavior. And, she lives totally "in the moment." These are some great "winning" lessons we can learn from Maddy. "Thank you, good girl, for writing this week's column for me. Here's a treat....but it's the last one....and I really do mean it this time!" Bob Burg ----------------------------------------- Bob Burg ( http://www.burg.com ) is author of "Endless Referrals" (McGraw-Hill) and "Winning Without Intimidation: How to Master the Art of Positive Persuasion in Today's Real World" (Samark Publishing.) http://www.burg.com/f-winning.html Now you can purchase his brand new booklet, "The Success Formula: Three Timeless Principles That Will Turbocharge Your Success And Dramatically Improve Your Life" http://www.TheSuccessFormula.com . This is an excellent way to say "thank you" to your customers and clients, and a very effective gift to give your prospects. I've no idea whether Bob has a dog of his own or not, but the reason I wanted to include this article is because he made a very perceptive remark when he said - "She even gives feedback (via the speed of her wagging tail) according to your intonation and pitch level." If you've been reading this newsletter any length of time you'll already know how much importance I place on intonation and pitch level. Once your dog is running free off the leash the *only* thing that connects you to it is your voice. You absolutely *must* learn to use your voice properly. Have you ever noticed how nearly all women talk to a baby or young child they're meeting for the first time? Without even being aware of it they raise the pitch of their voice and speak in a much more animated and expressive manner than if they were talking to an adult. It's not their 'normal' speaking mode, rather one they have the ability to turn on and off at will. That ability is what you need to develop. You have to be able to put real expression into your voice, because when it comes to training and handling your dog it's not the actual words you use that matter - it's the *way* you say them that count. For instance let's say your dog hits the deck at the command 'sit'. I'd be prepared to bet that its reaction to you, and the way it sits, will be completely dependent upon the way you issue the command in the first place. If you just say 'Fido, sit' in exactly the same way as the dog is always used to, chances are it'll just quietly sit without a second thought. On the other hand if you were to bellow the command out in your angriest voice; FIDO - SSSSITTT! the chances are the poor dog would cower into the sit position wondering what on earth it had done wrong. And at the other extreme imagine if you were to start leaping about playfully and then gave the command in a very high pitched, excitable 'invitation-to-play' type voice. Chances are this time the dog would be completely confused and quite possibly would not sit at all, but instead would start bounding about excitably. Yet the actual command 'sit' that you gave never changed, in the sense that it was the identical same word. But in reality each of those three scenarios is dramatically different as far as the dog is concerned - actions speak louder than words. Or perhaps when we apply the saying to dogs we should adjust it to say "Actions and tone speak louder than words." If you take no other piece of dog training advice on board, please please at least don't ignore this. It's such a small, apparently insignificant detail, but it really is one of the keys to successful dog training. You should be delighted to hear that. Why? For the simple reason that it's so easy to master. If you're used to talking in a monotone it'll obviously mean you'll have to work harder to conquer your old habits, but let's face it, it's hardly a Herculean task, is it? (Incidentally if you want to subscribe to Winning Without Intimidation simply send an email to - wwi@aweber.com) Recommended reading "Dog Training Blueprint To Success".
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