WEBVTT - Accept a compliment 

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.

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<v Speaker 1>Good Morning, This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>Today's tip is to accept compliments graciously. Many of us

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<v Speaker 1>have a tendency to bat compliments away or belittle ourselves

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<v Speaker 1>in response, but it's much healthier for ourselves and others

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<v Speaker 1>to come up with ways to acknowledge the truth of

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<v Speaker 1>the compliment and just be thankful. Today's tip, like a

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<v Speaker 1>few others this week, comes from Meredith Feynman's new book,

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<v Speaker 1>Brag Better, Master The Art of Fearless Self Promotion. Some

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<v Speaker 1>people are over the top braggarts, but a lot of

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<v Speaker 1>us suffer from the delusion that good work speaks for itself.

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<v Speaker 1>It can, but often it needs a little amplification. Fine

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<v Speaker 1>Men talks about a sketch from the inside Amy Schumer Show,

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<v Speaker 1>when a group of female friends go around complimenting each other.

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<v Speaker 1>When someone says something nice, the recipient responds by immediately

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<v Speaker 1>trashing herself. When it gets to Amy, she decides to

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<v Speaker 1>accept the compliment, and her friend's heads just blow off. Yep,

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<v Speaker 1>pretty much many of us, Fineman notes, have been taught

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<v Speaker 1>to overdo the modesty. However, it's totally possible for you

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<v Speaker 1>to accept praise without your head blowing off. She writes

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<v Speaker 1>that letting others celebrate your accomplishments can make you feel good,

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<v Speaker 1>let your legacy carry on, and also bring goodwill and

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<v Speaker 1>joy to those around you. One obvious response to a

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<v Speaker 1>compliment is just thank you. You can, in fact, just

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<v Speaker 1>leave it at that. If a simple thank you feels

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<v Speaker 1>a little incomplete, then come up with something that reflects

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<v Speaker 1>well on the person who complimented you, like thank you,

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<v Speaker 1>that's so thoughtful of you to point out, or thank you,

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<v Speaker 1>I really appreciate your support. If you like, you can

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<v Speaker 1>use the compliment to pivot to a trait that you

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<v Speaker 1>feel more sure of. If someone tells you that your

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<v Speaker 1>presentation was brilliant, you don't have to say yes, I'm brilliant.

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<v Speaker 1>You could say thank you, I worked really hard on it,

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<v Speaker 1>or thank you, I'm glad you thought all my practice

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<v Speaker 1>paid off. If it makes sense to accept the compliment

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<v Speaker 1>by sharing some of the basking, well you can go

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<v Speaker 1>for that too. If someone tells you that she loves

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<v Speaker 1>your shoes, well thanks, my sister helped me pick them out.

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<v Speaker 1>She has such great taste, or even better, you can

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<v Speaker 1>always pivot the compliment into a direction of more great

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<v Speaker 1>things in the future. If someone compliments you on how

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<v Speaker 1>well you ran that meeting, you can say thanks, I'd

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<v Speaker 1>love to present to some bigger groups in the future.

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<v Speaker 1>Or if someone compliments a report, thanks, who else do

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<v Speaker 1>you think I can share this with? All of these

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<v Speaker 1>do more good in the world than saying the equivalent

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<v Speaker 1>of what this old thing? So today, when someone compliments you,

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<v Speaker 1>practice accepting the compliment, don't downplay your accomplishments, and don't

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<v Speaker 1>deny what the person says. Say thank you and whatever

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<v Speaker 1>else feels most authentic to you. Accepting gifts is far

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<v Speaker 1>more gracious than turning them down, and denying a compliment

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<v Speaker 1>is really the equivalent of the latter. Better to have

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<v Speaker 1>more good feelings in this world. In the meantime, this

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<v Speaker 1>is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making the

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<v Speaker 1>most of our time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to hear

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<v Speaker 1>from you. You can send me your tips, your questions,

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<v Speaker 1>or anything else. Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook,

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<v Speaker 1>and Instagram at Before Breakfast Pod that's b E the

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<v Speaker 1>number four than Breakfast p o D. You can also

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<v Speaker 1>shoot me an email at Before Breakfast Podcast. At iHeart

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<v Speaker 1>media dot com that before Breakfast is spelled out with

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<v Speaker 1>all the letters. Thanks so much, I look forward to

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<v Speaker 1>staying in touch. Before Breakfast is a production of I

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<v Speaker 1>heart Radio. For more podcasts from i heart Radio, visit

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