April 20, 2016 by 
As an author, there is nothing more rewarding than seeing someone reading your book. The first time I witnessed this was on an airplane, when the woman sitting next to me pulled my book, Building a Magnetic Culture, out of her bag and started reading it. Needless to say, I smiled widely.
I then asked her, “How do you like that book?” Thankfully she said, “I love it. It’s full of neat and new ideas that we are implementing at our company to build and foster employee engagement.” She then asked me if I had read it and I got to say, “Yes, I have read it because I actually wrote it.” How fun is that? She looked at my picture on the back jacket cover and verified that I was indeed the author. I pulled my blue pen out and signed it for her, as I have done for more than 28,000 people at conferences, management retreats, and private client events. She was thrilled and engaged in getting personal attention and advice the entire rest of the flight.
The second time I ran into someone reading my book was on spring break when I took my family to the Grand Cayman Islands. Imagine my surprise when, during a seven mile walk along the beach, I saw a woman reading that same New York Times Best-Seller. I had a similar conversation as I did with the woman on the plane, and signed her book right there on the beach. I was honored to see someone enjoying the book I wrote while she was on vacation.
Getting such positive feedback from readers has been an incredibly rewarding part of becoming an author. In writing my books, I wanted to truly help people. When I give keynotes and engage with people directly, I can tell they’re learning, but it’s great to hear that people are putting the advice in the books to use.
One person who sticks out in my mind is the PHO Director of Doctors Hospital of Renaissance, Ms. Paulette Saca, who told me that my book was her bible at work. I said, “Your bible? Wow. Are you serious?” She said, “Very serious. In fact, I have tons of sticky notes demarking all of great takeaways on culture and employee engagement. I’ll send you a picture.” And this is what she sent:
I’m thankful for all of the positive feedback people give me directly, and when people take the time to write book reviews on Amazon.com and Barnesandnoble.com. These reviews are gifts to authors. We cherish them. So a big thank you to all of you who have written reviews.
Thinking back on the experience of getting feedback on my books, it reminds me of past jobs where I received performance reviews. It feels good to be recognized for doing your best and getting positive results. After all, recognition is the number one driver in employee engagement. Just knowing that people are still reading and learning from Building a Magnetic Culture and The Virtual Manager is enough to inspire me to keep going.
Does anyone at your organization need a reminder of how much they and their work are appreciated? Don’t delay in sharing how you feel.