Are You a Wrangler or a Strangler?

It has been said many times that our words can inflict great harm, or bring about powerful healing. It’s been said many times because its a truism and one that we all need to bear in mind before we speak.

Nurturers — those gifted and caring people among us, have a great deal of power and they tend to wield it wisely. These custodians of positivity, inspiration and motivation, are very often the ones that are the catalyst for innovation — their encouraging words and supportive demeanor, light a spark in many of us that leads to a bright burning flame of creativity and ingenuity. In essence, they “wrangle” the best out of others, so those seeds of imagination take root and grow stronger and stronger.

The story of The Wranglers and the Stranglers is a great reminder of just how vitally important nurturers are to this world:

The Wranglers and Stranglers

Many years ago there were a group of brilliant young men at the University of Wisconsin. The group of men seemed to have an amazing creative literary talent and were extraordinary in their ability to put their literary skills to its best use. These promising young men met regularly to read and critique each other’s literary works.

These men were merciless while they criticized one another. They dissected the most minute of the expressions and offered tough and even mean criticism to each others work. Their meeting sessions became arenas of literary criticism and the members of this exclusive club called themselves the “Stranglers.”

Not to be excluded to the opportunity to level up their literary skills, the women of literary interest in the university started a club of their own, one comparable to Stranglers. The members called themselves the “ Wranglers.” The member of the club too presented their literary pieces in front of each another. But the feedback from the members were much more softer, more positive and more encouraging. Every effort from a member, even the most feeble one, was encouraged by all.

After twenty years, a university alumnus was doing a study of his classmates’ careers, when he noticed a huge difference in the literary accomplishments of the Stranglers and the Wranglers.

Among all the brilliant young men in the “Stranglers,” none had made any significant literary achievement. But the “Wranglers” had several successful writers and some renowned national literary talents.

The talent and the education between the two groups were almost the same — there was not much difference. The Stranglers strangled each other, while the Wranglers gave each other a lift. The stranglers created an atmosphere of contention and self doubt, while the Wranglers brought out the best in each other.

– Author unknown

Sometimes the simple stories have the strongest message. Being a more positive person means being kind — they sort of go hand-in-hand. Why judge, act or speak harshly, when carefully chosen and purposeful words, tempered with tact and politeness, can do so much more?

“Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless.” — Mother Teresa