Remember when you’d get an assignment back from the teacher in elementary school and it would have a gold star on it?
Gold stars were given with care and received with joy. I always liked the gold ones. The silver ones were hard to see on paper. And the red ones… well…. just weren’t gold ones! Green and blue stars were hardly worth the mention. Besides, looking up at the sky, you don’t really see red, green or blue stars.
But a GOLD STAR!
Sure, the red ink, (fine point, when we didn’t even know there were different points because we really weren’t allowed to use a pen), of the teacher’s pen stood out on the thick penciled words we wrote on big lined rough finished paper. But red ink, even if it said, “Good Job!” or “Nice Work!” or even, “Excellent…. A+!!!” was still red ink. The kind of red ink that could say “Careless Errors… BE CAREFUL!” or “You can do better than this” or the dreaded “see me after class.”
When we thank others to honor the contributions they make, don’t only just say it.
And don’t just write a note. Not even if you use red or another color ink.
Give ‘em a gold star of your own choosing.
It doesn’t have to be an expensive gold star. But it’s got to be gold and it’s got to be something given with care to for it to be received with joy.
I always liked seeing a gold star on my paper. It acknowledged greatness even if it was a small greatness. But it gave me something to bring home and hand to my mom with pride. When I shared it with others who cared about me, it was like getting a whole constellation.
Share the gold star with moms, dads, spouses, children…
… let it shine for the whole family to see. 
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