Art provided by Maggie Seckler ’26<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I love to give compliments. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
To me, compliments are like little gifts for others, a way to make someone\u2019s day in just a simple sentence. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
To see a person\u2019s smile creep from ear to ear after giving him or her a compliment causes me to smile just as wide. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Receiving a compliment is similarly gratifying. No matter how confident one is about their outfit, comment in class, humor, etc., receiving a compliment is a form of superior validation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Despite this, I have noticed a compliment crisis in our world, Grace not being an exception. Often, compliments are viewed as fake — ingenuine and superficial. The famous Mean Girls<\/em><\/a> quote sums it up perfectly:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Though this perception of compliment giving is not 100% inaccurate, the assumption that many of us share the same disingenuine intentions as Regina George ruins the beauty of the simple action. <\/p>\n\n\n\n After asking students around school how often they give compliments, I found that most people give compliments once or twice a day. This number could easily be higher, considering how giving compliments is such a non-strenuous task.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI don\u2019t really feel like I give that many compliments,\u201d commented Barak L \u201824, who proceeded to announce: \u201cI feel like I should give more.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n I wonder: why don\u2019t we give more compliments?<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n Ian G. \u201824 explained: \u201cThe only reason I wouldn\u2019t [give a compliment] is if, I don\u2019t know, I don\u2019t want to come across the wrong way, or if it\u2019s somebody I don\u2019t know really well, I wouldn\u2019t want to just blurt it out. But if it\u2019s not a big thing, then I will.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n One study<\/a> validates Ian\u2019s concerns, finding that many people underestimate how their compliments will benefit the receiver, believing that perhaps they will be perceived as cringy or fake, like Regina George. They don\u2019t give compliments because they are worried that they won\u2019t land well. <\/p>\n\n\n\n This preconceived notion is riddled with worry, as compliments positively impact both the giver and receiver. Studies<\/a> show that both giving and receiving compliments triggers the reward system in our brains, releasing dopamine, making us feel happy, satisfied, and motivated. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
Regina:<\/strong> Vintage, so adorable.
Lea Edwards:<\/strong> Thanks.
Regina:<\/strong> [after girl walks away] That is the ugliest f-ing skirt I’ve ever seen.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n