Why Acting Like a Dog May Help You Get What You Want

My friend and business partner, Eric Lejeune of Stride Leadership recently got a new dog.  His name is Dexter.  What a cutie, right?

Dogs are amazing in so many ways.  Second to none, however, must be a dogs unwavering love.  We’ve heard it before…

A dog will love you if you’re mad, sad, glad, depressed, busy, or sick.

A dog is always excited when you come home.

A dog never wants to see you leave.

A dog will accept you if you’re dressed funny.

A dog will pant and wag it’s tail even if your joke is really bad.

A dog will come to you to for a belly rub even if you just took it’s bone away for no good reason.

A dog will be your best friend even if you haven’t spoken to it in days.

A dog will even love you when you can’t find a way to love yourself.

It’s pretty amazing.  But how do they do it?

What’s missing from a dog’s perception is all the human shit.

A dog seems to reflect what most humans really want: love, peace and joy.  The cool thing is that the dog’s behaviors are clearly in line with it’s intention.  Humans… not so much.

Imagine what the life of a dog would be like if it judged, held grudges, held onto ego, was resentful, or cared what others thought.  What a different world it would be.  It’s the world of humans.   What if we, like dogs, let go of judgement, forgave freely, realized our oneness with others, and were truly comfortable in our own skin?  Wow it would be different, yes?

Dogs don’t tell themselves stories.

Humans do.  Try it.  Here’s a little experiment.  Next time you see someone, go stand really close to them and just stand there.  Watch them tell themselves a story in their head about what’s going on, about who you are, and what it means about who they are.  One things for sure.  Their state of mind will not remain the same.

Now try the same thing with a dog.  It might look at you or move, but it will be with wonderment… no story.  Totally different scenario.

What if we could be more like dogs in our relationships?  What would that be like?  What would it be like to try it for a day?

What if we could be more like dogs with our clients and business relationships?  What would happen if we treated vendors, service personell and customer service reps this way?  What if they treated us this way?

Acting like a dog just might help you get what you want.  Just don’t bite (or sniff inappropriately).