Article December 26, 1901 Issue

Plus and Minus People

Success

We all know people who never add anything to our fun, our information, our happiness, or our comfort. They are always trying to get something from us without giving anything in return. They are sponges that absorb, but give nothing back. When they leave us, we have a minus feeling, a consciousness of having lost something. On the other hand, we know people who always give more than they take from us; they are resourceful, suggestive, helpful; everything increases under their touch, for they are not trying to see how much they can get, but, instead, to give us something. They are optimists; they turn the best side of themselves to us, say pleasant things, and are helpful in their intercourse. They do not try to drain us dry; we have a plus feeling when they depart, a consciousness of having found something; they seem to leave a part of themselves with us. Like the rose, they bestow their fragrance and their beauty for us to think about after they are gone. Everybody loves the man or woman who leaves something behind,—a pleasant memory, a helpful suggestion, or kind word. Nobody cares for the absorbent people who get everything they can and give nothing.

Success, November, 1901.

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