GRANTED: Wondering about whether to hire overqualified people and how to improve reference checks
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June 2018
After receiving help, don't say "I owe you a favor." It reduces an act of kindness to an accounting transaction.
Instead of offering to repay a debt, signal a willingness to be generous: "Let me know if I can ever be helpful" or "I stand ready to pay it forward."
Or better yet, just say thank you and tell them how much you appreciate their help.
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Without further ado, here are my answers to three of your questions from this month and resources on ten others:
Submit your own questions to wondering@adamgrant.net. Include your first name and city, or ask to be anonymous, and I'll pick a few next month to answer here.
Cheers,
Adam
Adam Grant, Ph.D.
Host of WorkLife, author of ORIGINALS and GIVE AND TAKE,
coauthor of OPTION B, and Wharton professor