Hold the wrapping paper -- a compliment needn't be wrapped!
Earlier this week at work, we had our typical weekly meeting, where we share new ideas and talk about how things are going. During the meeting, I brought up an idea I that I had been thinking of for a future event at our club. Later that day, one of my co-workers came up to me and said, “Jordan, that was a really great idea today in the meeting. Thanks for sharing.” Because of this woman’s sincere praise, I felt happy and proud of myself for the duration of the day. It was such a simple thing for my co-worker to do but her kind words meant so much to me and supplied me with a great boost in my mood.
This quick story brings me to the topic of this post: the power of compliments. One of the best ways to boost someone’s mood (and self-confidence!) is to gift them with a compliment or two. Compliments make us smile. They help make us feel good about ourselves. They give us a sense of reassurance that may be needed at times. Since you probably know how great it feels to receive sincere admiration, I suggest you do the same to others. You know when you’re out and about and you see someone’s shoes or outfit you love? Or you’re in a work meeting, and a co-worker has an idea that you think is brilliant? Tell them! Smile and share with them that you admire their style, their vision/idea, etc.
I challenge you to start giving at least three compliments a day. While nice comments serve as gifts to others, this challenge is not completely selfless. When you share your admiration with another you simultaneously created happy feelings inside of yourself. Practicing this random act of kindness will usually give the receiver an elated feeling, which will provide you with a sense of joy in return. Giving a genuine compliment is a sure and simple way to make your day, and the day of someone else, a little brighter.
Happy gifting compliments,
Jordan Brown
What a great blog!! I was feeling kind of down these past few days and last night decided to “snap out of it.” It’s nice seeing your blog and reading about someone who wants to promote positive change! I’ve been a Toastmaster in the past, it’s a great organization! Hope you’ll check out my blog at http://www.anneofgreengardens.com I’m writing a gardening book and not sure how to get published, so any advice you’d have would be great!
Hi Anne!
Thanks for reading and for commenting. I am so glad that you like my blog. I just checked out your blog and emailed it to a few of my friends and family members that are big fans of gardening. Your blog is beautiful with all of the pictures and colors — it looks great! As far as book publishing goes… I have done quite a bit of research and after some deliberation, have decided to self publish my first book. I have heard that it is VERY hard to find a literary agent and publisher for your first publication, and many have had success with self-publishing their first book and then trying to find a publisher for their next. You can research more about self-publishing online, and I would recommend using CreateSpace.com. It’s an awesome, easy-to-use self-publishing website. If you have any more questions, don’t hesitate to ask.
Best of luck to you in blogging, book writing, and of course, gardening!
Best,
Jordan
Jordan, I love your post today. I’ve heard that it takes a number of good comments to counteract a single negative one so I think it is super important for us to be complementing ourselves and others as much as we can.
Hey Liza, thanks for reading and for commenting! That’s an interesting thought that I definitely agree with. And I also agree that giving compliments to OURSELVES is equally as important as giving compliments to others! Great thoughts, thanks for sharing.