Originally broadcast on CHED Radio, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada in 1963

There is one all important law of human conduct.  If we obey the law, we shall almost never get into trouble.  In fact, that law, if obeyed, will bring us countless friends and constant happiness.  But the very instant we break that law, we shall get into endless trouble.  The law is this: Professor William James says:  "The deepest principle in human nature is the craving to be appreciated".

The unvarnished truth is that almost every man you meet feels himself superior to you in some way; and a sure way to his heart is to let him realize in some subtle way that you recognize his importance in his world, and recognize it sincerely.  Remember what Emerson said: "Every man I meet is in some way my superior;  and in that I can learn of him."

You don't have to wait until you are ambassador to France or chairman of the clambake committee of the Elks club before you use this philosophy of appreciation. You can work magic with it almost every day.  Little phrases like "I am sorry to trouble you", "would you mind", " thank you", - little courtesies like that oil the cogs of the monotonous grind of everyday life - and incidentally, they are the hallmark of good breeding.

Would you like to know how to make a woman fall in love with you?  Well, here is the secret.  It is not my idea.  I borrowed it from Dorothy Dix.  She once interviewed a celebrated bigamist who had won the hearts and bank accounts  of 23 women.  (And by the way, it ought to be noted that she interviewed him in jail).  When she asked him his recipe for making women fall in love with him, he said it was no trick at all:  all you had to do was talk to a woman about herself.

And the same technique works with men;  "Talk to a man about himself", said Disraeli, one of the shrewdest men who ever ruled the British Empire, "and he will listen for hours".