It was a long time ago. It wasn’t even this century yet. Somebody recommended a book to us. We ordered it and started reading. It was a big bang. This book brought us some completely new insights and made us realize what we wanted to do in life . Even today, so many years later, the message of this book still hasn’t lost its strength. Looking back, one might say that this book was one of the reasons we started CiC group and The Quan in the first place.

Don’t get me wrong. It is kind of stupid to base all your inspiration on a single book. We know that of course. There are many other good books and one learns the most from real life experiences. No doubt about that. But this book however, opened our eyes at that time and made us realize what was (and still is) going on in too many relationships, whether they are working relationships or personal. So many people are constantly making other people small. Even unconsciously. Even people that they love. Probably, no surely, sometimes without even wanting to do it.

‘Bringing out the best in people’ (because that is what the name of this book is) of Alan Loy McGinnis shows you the importance of doing the opposite. It shows you the way on how to motivate and inspire other people. And the positive vibe that comes from that. This book is about helping people. Helping the ones you love and the ones you work with, to become the best they can be. It is about being proud of other people, supporting them when they fall and helping them to excel. And thus it is about being the best you can be yourself.

Pardon our enthusiasm, but that is just exactly what reading this book brings over you. Although the book describes things in that typical positive American way (the way that people in Europe call too commercial and corny) and although the book has no scientific value whatsoever, still it gave us so much inspiration. It made us keen on supporting other people. It helped us to understand the thoughts of the talents we at The Quan and CiC group are now working with on a daily basis.

So therefore we have to recommend this book. Maybe it doesn’t work for you. Maybe you don’t feel like helping other people at all. But if this book only does to you what it did to us, it would be a sin to withhold it from you.

Alan Loy McGinnis: ‘Bringing out the best in people’ Augsburg Publishing house Minneapolis
ISBN 0-8066-2151-6