Nice power?

Shani gave me the book The Power of Nice after she did a piece on the authors, 2 women who run a NYC ad agency. The book is about how being polite will help you succeed in business. Basically I couldn’t be bothered to read it.

However I experienced a few unexpected, pleasant surprises in New Orleans:
1) Diane discounted the earrings I bought and gave me a hug
2) A man from Denver paid for my dinner at Snug Harbor
3) A couple from Nashville paid for my cab ride to the airport

They all said they did these things was because I was “nice” to them. (But then again, since all the acts involved money, maybe I looked destitute or impoverished or something.)

On Canal Street Monday morning, I saw a man walking towards me and staring at me. In Manhattan the street would’ve been busier and I would’ve been able to ignore him. But in New Orleans, that would just be rude. So I allow the man to stop me, and he asks me where I was from. I tell him New York. He pulls out his driver's license - to show me he's from New York too. He gives me a hug (and asks me out). Taken aback by an unsolicited hug from a total stranger, my initial reaction was to check to make sure I still had my wallet. I did.

But all this made me wonder: how many more opportunities might I have by being nicer and more open?