This is why you should give more compliments

This is why you should give more compliments

When was the last time you gave someone a compliment? For most of us, we don't give them as often as we should. Research by Vanessa Bohns and Erica Boothby suggests that we underestimate how good a compliment will make the receiver feel and we also overestimate how uncomfortable or bothered the receiver will feel. So what should we do? Give more compliments more often - but make sure they are genuine.

Stop apologising for your delay in replying

I love this article in The Atlantic that challenges the self-imposed feeling that we must reply to all messages immediately. I experience this guilt daily myself, especially with text messages where I feel like a bad friend if I don't respond within a few hours. Joe Pinsker suggests that instead of responding with a mildly passive aggressive "thank you for your patience", we need to change our expectations.

You need to be more funny. Seriously.

I am such a huge fan of Naomi Bagdonas and Jennifer Aaker who teach humour to MBA students at Standford. They also wrote the bestseller Humor, Seriously. If you're not familiar with their work, their recent TED talk is a great introduction. Funny, but also very wise.

A web browser with no ads and no tracking

I was recently looking through the apps on my partner's phone (with his permission - I wasn't being a creepy stalker) and I came across an app called Brave. I imagined some motivational / inspirational app. But no - it was something even better: it's a browser that eliminates all ads. I've been using it for the last few days and it feels SO WEIRD but SO GOOD reading articles without ads. And as a big bonus, it also stops you being tracked online by people who profit from your data.