341. Appreciation

Nora on the art of appreciating out loud.

Transcripts may not appear in their final version and are subject to change.

I’m Nora McInerny and it’s going to be okay.  I saw a meme, you know, of Indeterminate Origin floating around, uh, this month that said basically something to the effect of, I want to appreciate people out loud. I want to praise my friends. I want to call out the good where I see it.  And I’m pretty sure I shared that.

I know I saw a lot of other people sharing it. That’s what this episode is about, honestly. It is about the art of appreciating things and people out loud.  I think it’s a basic tenet of, like, customer service that when people love something, they say nothing, and when people hate something, they will complain.

If you slightly disappoint somebody in any way, they will let you know about it. If you do a great job, they’ll be like, okay, that’s, that’s pretty good.  And appreciating other people out loud, other people, their work, the experience that you’re having  seems almost uncool in a deeply cynical society.

You know, there’s something that’s almost maybe too earnest for some people to just say, Wow, I really like this thing.I love this thing. I am having so much fun with you. I am around  audible appreciators constantly. And until I saw that meme, I did not realize that is what I was experiencing. My youngest child will out of nowhere say, I’m having the best day with you.  I, we have, we have such a good family. I’m having such a great day.

I’m really enjoying this movie.  It’s just so sweet to watch him go through the world. And if you see something that you like, I’ll say something. He heard the phrase, if you see something, say something. And he did not think terrorism. He did not think, you know, public safety. He thought of appreciation.

If you see something that you like, if you are having a good time, make sure you say it out loud. That’s what he does. And honestly,  it is the purest  way to make someone else’s day and also to make your day because it feels so good to like something. Being a hater is So boring. It’s so boring and I say that as a person who is kind of you know, I’ve been known to be a hater.

I’ve been known to be a naysayer. I’ve been known to be a little bit of a bummer from time to time. It’s so much more energizing and wonderful to like things And I am going,  and another example of this sort of appreciating something out loud.  Okay, hold on. I’m gonna start over.  So ever since I saw that, I’ve tried to do a better job of just letting people know when I’m thinking something nice about them or when I’m saying something nice about them behind their backs so that they know  That they’re being appreciated out loud, whether or not they can hear it.

The other day, my friend Sharon, you know, who has, I think, uh, probably over a million followers on Instagram, right? Like she’s got, she’s got, she’s got a lot of eyeballs on her. She made, she makes a lot of Instagram stories. They’re all very, very intelligent. She’s a very, very smart person. And I appreciated that she was, you know,  providing this crucial information to me.

But also I was like, you’re so beautiful. You look so beautiful and you get a lot of credit for being smart, but do you know how hot you are? And I texted that to her and she was like, LOL, what are you talking about? It was like, Oh, I was just looking at your Instagram story. And she’s like, Oh, thank you.

Out of nowhere today, my friend Kendra Adachi, the lazy genius herself.  texted me and what did she say? Because I was like, oh man, I really, that got me through today. She said, I think you’re rad. Just want to tell you, carry on.  So cool. So wonderful. And there are ways to do this that are not just heaping compliments and objective, objectifying  your friends, um, which is not what Kendra did, but it is what I tend to do.

And one of those ways  leaving reviews. And this is not me milking you for a review of this podcast, but you know, when, when you look something up on a maps app, it tends to also show you the, the rating.  And, um, I was trying to navigate myself to a gas station that has a specific kind of soda machine, an ice machine that I like.

And I happened to notice that they have quite a high rating. And I was like, who’s rating this gas station? I’ll tell you who’s rating this gas station. Rhonda is rating this gas station. Five stars.  And this is what Rhonda said, and I love this from the bottom of my heart.  I’m always amazed when I go to a QT store.

Okay, the, the, the jig is up. It’s not sponsored, but I’m talking about QuickDrip.  The cashiers there can handle three registers at a time. The service is always great. You’re out of there fast. The lines move really fast. The selection of food and snacks are stocked very well, as well as hot food for lunches and dinner.

QT also has a deli type restaurant where you can order fresh sandwiches and fresh salads and drinks. I like this store a lot. It’s just fun to watch the cashiers. They’re pretty good at what they do. I recommend this store or any other QT to the public because they have very high standards and live up to their customers expectations.

When was the last time  you reviewed your gas station? When was the last time that you appreciated the way, appreciated out loud, the way that your cashier at the gas station can handle three registers at a time? I love it.  I love Rhonda for this. I love the cashiers at Quick Trip. I  love that ice. They’ve got the pebble ice there.

And I love the art  of appreciating out loud.  I appreciate you for being here, for sticking with this  semi coherent rant,  ramble.  Um, it is going to be okay. And if it’s not, go to QT and, and marvel.  at what the cashiers can do there. Go appreciate something out loud, whatever it is.  This episode was produced by Claire McInerny.

Good job, buddy. It was mixed by Amanda Romani. The rest of our team is Marcel Malekebu, and Grace Barry. Our theme music is by Secret Audio.