Friday, September 18, 2009

The Art of Compliments

Do you enjoy compliments? Are you comfortable with giving compliments?

Compliments have a way of enhancing someone’s day. It seems to rejuvenate and embolden them. Steven Demaio wrote a good article for the Harvard Business Publishing blog called ‘The Art of Giving Praise’. Read it!

A few years, I had the privilege of emceeing for a conference for Solutions Focused practitioners. The late-co-founder of Solutions Focused Brief Therapy, Insoo Kim Berg taught us the value of compliments. Essentially, she encouraged us to apply:

1) Direct Compliments

2) Indirect Compliments

3) Self-Compliments

Which of these are you most comfortable with? Which of these are Asians most comfortable with: direct, or indirect compliment? The initial belief did not match the practice. Time and time again, I get to dispel these false assumptions and theories.

Give somebody a compliment today.

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