Do Compliments Make You Cringe? Here’s Why.

Metadata

• Author: Christopher Littlefield
• Full Title: Do Compliments Make You Cringe? Here’s Why.
• Category: #articles
• Document Tags: leadership
• URL: https://hbr.org/2021/04/do-compliments-make-you-cringe-heres-why?utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter_monthly&utm_campaign=ascendhotlist_not_activesubs&deliveryName=DM264080

Highlights

• Simply put, when we’re surprised, we:
  • Stage 1: Momentarily freeze
  • Stage 2: Find an explanation for what is happening
  • Stage 3: Shift our perspective
  • Stage 4: Share our experience with other
  Surprises often bring joy or excitement, and for some people, even emotionally pleasant news can be cognitively intense. (Stage 1: Freeze.) Their heart may start racing, their pupils may dilate, and their palms may sweat as their dopamine levels rise (View Highlight)
• Know that the compliment is about the giver, not you (the receiver) (View Highlight)
• thinking of your vulnerability not as a weakness but as openness. Praise doesn’t always need to feel unexpected or scary. Instead, think of it as an opportunity to connect with someone else, or learn how others experience you or your work. (View Highlight)