Ben Yagoda Professions : Writer Born : February 22, 1954 Browse All Authors Top 3 quotes by Ben Yagoda Quotes are like cayenne pepper or some other strong spice: a little goes a long way, and too much is a disaster. Ben Yagoda spices strong long Thomas Gordon, founder of P.E.T. (Parent Effectiveness Training), observed that when children are behaving in a way that interferes with your ability to meet your needs, shouting direct orders to them doesn't work very well. So, he advised sending I messages. That is, a better alternative to, Your room is a disaster area-clean it up this minute, would be something like, I get embarrassed when Mrs. Johnson is visiting and sees your room looking this messy, so I need you to clean it up. Ben Yagoda effectiveness order children All good writers are sensitive to clichés and endeavor to avoid them Ben Yagoda sensitive endeavor good-writers Similar Authors Ihab Hassan writer Ingmar Bergman writer Isabella Bird writer Ivan E. Coyote writer Al Feldstein writer Bert Sugar writer All Authors