Add this to your reading list

I’ll often say that The Five Love Languages is the best book I’ve read in years. Now, it has huge pink love heart on the front cover and has fundamentally been written to help people improve their romantic relationships – however, I’m happy to go on record as saying that it can be one of the best business books you’ll ever read too.

The principle behind the book is that people primarily show love in one of five ways – through Words of Affirmation, Quality Time, Receiving Gifts, Acts of Service and Physical Touch – and that’s the way they most like to receive it. Too bad if the person you’re showing love to prefers to receive it in a different way – we’re mostly hardwired to show it in our own way as a default.

After reading the book we figured out that my husband and I have pretty much completely opposite love languages. I like presents and gifts, even if it’s just a rock from the garden or a card. My husband likes acts of service, ie. when he’s painting the deck or vacuuming, that’s how he’s showing me he loves me. (Vacuuming?! How was I meant to figure that one out?!).

The reason I say this book is one of the best business books I’ve ever read is that the same principle applies to rewarding clients and staff. You’ve got to find out what language they speak and reward or recognise them in the same way. Giving a monetary bonus to a staff member that just wants you to take five minutes to tell them in a heartfelt way that you appreciate them is almost pointless.

I highly recommend you don’t get scared off the big heart and put The Five Love Languages on your personal and business reading list for better relationships (with everyone).

Kirsty Dunphey is the youngest ever Australian Telstra Young Business Woman of the Year, author of two books (her latest release is ‘Retired at 27, If I Can do it Anyone Can’) and a passionate entrepreneur who started at age 15 and opened her own real estate agency at 21. Currently Kirsty heads up www.reallysold.com the premium online copywriting site for real estate agents and is a co-director of Elephant Propertywww.elephantproperty.com.au Launceston, Tasmania’s only boutique real estate agency purely for investment property owners. Kirsty’s other ventures are outlined at her website www.kirstydunphey.com where you can also sign up for her newsletter.