Thursday, February 24, 2005

Craving for positive strokes

Earlier this evening, I spoke to my friend, Mystic, over the phone. During the phone conversation, the theme about receiving positive strokes came through. Oh yes, I think I have a craving for positive strokes. Perhaps I have a lack of such strokes, so I have been craving for more due to deprivation?

For me, the concept of "strokes" is associated very closely with one of the key ideas of Transactional Analysis. Strokes as I understand, are units of interpersonal recognition, needed for people to survive and thrive.

For example, receiving a comment that pays me a compliment is a positive stroke. An example of a positive stroke that I have received today was a compliment from a colleague who saw that I had a new background on my office's computer's desktop. She said it looked nice, and knowing that I was trying to learn to take nice photographs, she asked if I had taken that picture. Of course, I gladly told her that I did. You bet there was a smile on my face then.

Of course, strokes can also be negative in nature. Through my work as a social worker, I am aware of children who misbehave just in order to get scoldings from their parents. Scoldings are still forms of interpersonal recognition, and some children would rather get scoldings than to get absolutely no attention at all from their parents. The idea here is that getting a negative stroke is far better than getting no stroke at all. If a positive stroke cannot be attained, then the next best thing is negative stroke. Last on the list is to have no stroke at all.

I must emphasise that I am craving for positive strokes. Positive strokes feel nicer to receive than negative strokes. So I shall muster the courage to ask if you could give me positive strokes genuinely?

Here's an outright appeal for positive strokes. Please give me some genuine compliments, or encouragement. Keep them coming in. Thank you very much in advance.

(Haha... I must highlight that I am not desperate, I am just craving for positive strokes.)

3 comments:

mistipurple said...

may i have the privilege to give you positive strokes! your pics are nice. they bring me to places i otherwise could never have been. you write well. i look forward to "see" you each time. you also share willingly. anyone would be proud to have you as a friend. lucky mystic!

Goat Almighty said...

i, on the other hand am desperate for positive strokes. ;)

oceanskies79 said...

Hi Mistipurple: Thank you for the positive strokes. I am happy that you like reading my blog. =)

Hi Mr Loobz, cheering for you and wishing you all the best in your endeavours. (This is meant to be a positive stroke.)