How to recieve praise
I’ve been getting a lot of amazingly nice praise recently, which has .given me a chance to practice receiving praise gracefully.
I use a method that helps me avoid some common mistakes in receiving praise:
- Don’t explain the praise away – as in “Aaww, it was nothing special”
- Don’t reject the praise – as in “You don’t need to thank me, I was just doing my job”
- Don’t ignore the praise – as in “How about them Dodgers!”
Remember when people take time out to praise you or something you’ve done, it’s nice to accept the praise in the spirit it’s given.
I recommend this 2-step process for receiving praise:
- Shut up
- Say “Thank you!”
Step 3, jumping up and down, pumping your fist in the air while yelling “I’m the MAN!” is optional and should probably be avoided in many situations.
Karen Said,
August 30, 2006 @ 10:56 pm
I TOTALLY agree. Some, mostly women, tend to excuse themselves when someone praises them. I have often heard replyes like: “Oh you say I look good/did a great job/etc. It must be some kind of mistake – it wasn’t on purpose!”
That’s really a funny reaction!
Contract Worker - Staying Happy While Working Said,
December 15, 2006 @ 7:13 pm
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Lexica Said,
December 22, 2006 @ 2:13 am
Funny, this is exactly the same advice I got from my metalworking teacher, only his steps were 1. Say “thank you.” 2. Shut up!
He expanded on it by saying that most people have a tendency to point out the flaws in their work when complimented (”Oh, it could have been better here, and I wanted to do this part differently but…” ). “Nobody will know it’s wrong UNLESS YOU TELL THEM,” he said. And he’s right – I’ve never had anyone say “This is nice – except for this flaw here.”
Alexander Said,
December 28, 2006 @ 2:52 pm
Lexica: Tell your metalworking teacher he’s a smart guy :o) I agree completely – we shouldn’t try to explain away our accomplishments. We should shut up and enjoy the praise!