I Complimented 50 People In A Week

Here Is What I Learned…

I digitally welcome you, thank you for taking the time to read this post, your beautiful ‘virtual’ presence is acknowledged, and it’s made my day!

Let’s face it, we all love to receive a compliment.

That feeling of being acknowledged and appreciated by someone will make our hearts sing and put a smile on our faces.

It has the ability to brighten up a rainy day and make us skip down the street with joy…

…And that’s just for the person giving the compliment!

I was inspired to spend a week complimenting 50 people, following a ‘shit’ day at the beginning of the year.

I woke up feeling miserable, it was cold and rainy outside. My alarm didn’t go off, so I was rushing around like a lunatic, trying to get ready in time for a client meeting…

… I ran to the train station, realized I’d spilled half my coffee down my white shirt, and left my laptop at home, so I couldn’t do my presentation.

You know, just a normal Monday morning!

Can you relate?

I was ready to write the whole day off as a disaster, then out of the blue a little girl who sat next to me on the train said:

“I think you look like a princess”

At first, I was shocked and thought I’d heard her wrong, but then I was overcome with emotion and thought:

“What a wonderful thing to say to someone”

Those 7 words had the power to transform my whole day, and I couldn’t stop smiling.

It costs nothing, so I wanted to spread the same joy I felt in that moment to others.

The truth is…

… We are not robots. We all have feelings and emotions. We have moments where we feel insecure. We have moments of feeling “I’m not good enough.” We have moments where we feel like giving up.

But, these are just fleeting moments.

We don’t need to surrender our whole day because a bad thing happened, or we got up on the wrong side of the bed.

We have the power to change our mindset instantly…

… And it took the kind words of a little girl, when I needed it the most, to learn that lesson.

So, my ‘complimenting marathon’ began…

… Here is what I learned in a week:

Smiling is Contagious

We all know the saying:

“Smile and the world smiles with you”

Well turns out that is true…

… The first person I gave a compliment to was the train driver. My stop was Waterloo, as soon as I got off the train, I walked to the driver's cabin, knocked on his window and said:

“Thank you for driving us safely to our destination, it was a lovely, smooth ride.”

The driver smiled instantly; his face lit up with joy…

…OK, he was taken aback at first… I’m not sure how many people take the time to do that!

But it was a great feeling to know that I had created that moment.

The driver's smile stayed with me for the whole day, I was unconsciously wearing it throughout the rest of the day. I only became aware of it because so many people I walked past smiled back at me.

Behavioral Psychologist, Sarah Stevenson says:

“Each time you smile you throw a little feel-good party in your brain.”

Who doesn’t like to have a party which makes you feel good?

Plus, to top it off, British researchers found that:

“One smile can generate the same level of brain stimulation as up to 2,000 bars of chocolate.”

I’m sold. Everyone who walks past me from now on needs to get ready for a feel-good party!

You get free stuff:

One of my favorite places to get coffee, is a little independent coffee shop next to my work in Angel. As I ordered my morning coffee, I said to the lady:

“Your smile lights up the room.”

She started laughing at first and said:

“Thank you for making my day! I‘m going to make you a Flat White on the house for being so charming.”

It felt like the best Flat White I’d ever tasted because it was literally made with love and kindness.

I’m not condoning you should compliment someone just to get free stuff. But I’m emphasizing the positive effect it has on someone's mood…

…If someone makes us feel good, we want to make them feel good back.

Another day, I had to go to Boots because I ran out of make-up. I wanted to try something new, so I went to the No7 counter for help.

The lady was wonderful. As I was about to pay, I said:

“Thank you for being so patient with me and taking the time to pick the best products out for my skin tone, I really appreciate it!”

Then, I offered to tell her manager.

The lady was so appreciative of being acknowledged and valued, she gave me 50% off using her staff discount.

The more unconditional kindness I was putting out into the universe, the more kindness was coming back to me.

It’s addictive

Giving compliments became addictive.

It felt like every day I needed to get my fix of spreading joy and happiness to the world, because as soon as I did, I received smiling faces staring back at me.

From someone who suffers from anxiety and insecurity, I know how important a compliment can be. I understand the power of a kind word and a smile.

We all have bad days, so it’s important to make an effort to acknowledge and appreciate people.

Even now, when you’re home with your family, take the time to give them a compliment, no matter how big or small, it won’t go unnoticed.

To conclude:

Sincere compliments have the power to stay with someone for years, they will remember your kind words when they need it the most!

Let’s be the reason for putting a smile on someone's face today.