My mom was constantly telling me to be nice. As the oldest of five kids, it was hard being nice to my three brothers and sister. While my brothers were terribly annoying at times and my baby sister was bossy most of the time, Mom told me I still needed to be nice to them.

Mom needs to have a talk with Joe Wilson, Serena Williams and Kayne West as well. While all three may have had a good reason for being angry, there was no excuse for not being nice. Each one picked the wrong time, place and, in some cases, language to express their concern.

I think it’s time for all of us to be a little nicer. In their wonderful book, The Power of Nice: How to Conquer the Business World, Linda Kaplan and Robin Koval share how you can be extremely successful in business by being nice. And in my book, Lessons From a Mama’s Boy: How Mom Taught Me to Be a Success in Business and Life, I stress the importance of being nice.

People who embrace the belief “Nice guys finish last” aren’t running the same race I’m running. Being nice doesn’t mean never taking a strong stand, trying hard or having deep convictions. It’s about listening, cooperation, kindness and having a quiet, controlled strength.

I still like Thumper’s classic line from the movie, Bambi. It’s one we should all remember. “If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say nothing at all.”

Once a year in high school, I had the chance to write what I thought about my classmates. They gave me their yearbooks to sign. “Stay cute and sweet” “2 sweet 2 be 4 gotten” Today kids still sign their friends’ yearbooks with messages very similar to those of my day. A new phrase I saw in my son’s middle school yearbook was HAGS – Have A Great Summer!

Unlike my high school days, both kids and adults can now sign their friends’ yearbooks any day of the year. Social media gives us the chance to comment 24/7. Using Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and others you can constantly tell people and organizations what you think about them.

Is that a good thing? Yes and no. When signing a yearbook, most people give a little thought to what they might write. You only have one chance a year to get it right. In the case of social media, I’m not sure there’s a lot of thought that goes into some online comments and updates.

On the other hand, it’s a great way to get feedback from your customers – to know what people are saying about you online. If the comment is negative, you can address the problem and let the person who commented know the problem’s been corrected. If the comment is positive, you can pass that information along to other customers and prospects.

The internet has opened our yearbooks to the world. Let’s pay attention to what’s being written about us and give a little more thought to what we write. To all of you…HAGS – Have a Great September!

When I played high school basketball in the mid ‘70s, the shorts were a lot shorter, the socks were a lot longer, and there was no 3 point line. At 5’11” and 145 pounds, I was a force to be reckoned with on the court.

A recent study, “When Losing Leads to Winning,” by two Wharton School professors found only 11.8 percent of basketball teams behind by 10 points or more at halftime win the game. For every 2 points you add to your lead, you increase your chance of winning by 8 percent.

Good information, but here’s where it gets really interesting. Teams losing by 1 point at halftime are more likely to win than the team leading by 1 point. How can this be, you ask? Maybe Avis Rent A Car had the answer. Remember their legendary ads “We try harder.” The authors of the study believe players are more motivated and work harder when they are just shy of their goal.

During these difficult economic times, are you a little behind on your goals? Stay motivated and working hard, you may be closer to winning than you think. Keep encouraging your team as well. If you’re in the lead, don’t slack off.

Now at 6’ 0” and 160 pounds, I am no longer a force on or off the court. But I look a heck of a lot better in today’s long shorts and short socks.

As a child, did you ever say anything embarrassing like use a word incorrectly or accidently reveal a family secret? Or have your own children embarrassed you in this way? Ever wish you could review your children’s words before they speak them?

Businesses and organizations are facing a similar problem. With the popularity of email, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, etc., sensitive or embarrassing information is being communicated more and more. Recently, major league sports teams were having a problem with their players tweeting about potential trades. This wasn’t helping in negotiations.

Proofpoint just released a survey of 220 American companies with over 1,000 employees. They found 38% have assigned staff to read and analyze emails for embarrassing or sensitive material. That’s up from 29% in 2008. These companies had either been negatively affected or worried they could be from employees communicating the wrong information.

I wish I had someone to monitor the words I’m about to say. In many cases, my words totally bypassed my brain and go straight out my mouth. What policies do you have in place to avoid embarrassment?