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By Cara Beth Lewis

A compliment can turn a bad day around, boost confidence, supply motivation, and summon a smile. It’s simple and it’s free, and what better time is there to give a compliment than on National Compliment Day?

“Compliment” is a verb. Here is how Merriam-Webster defines it:

To express esteem, respect, affection, or admiration to : to pay a compliment to.

Compliments express gratitude and admiration. Sadly, many people are uncomfortable with giving compliments for a variety of reasons. According to Harvard Business Review (hbr.org), “Compliment-givers tend to believe the other person won’t enjoy their interaction as much as they actually do; in fact, they often believe that their exchange will probably make the person a little uncomfortable.” The Review conducted an experiment to see how compliments were expected to be received, versus how the receptor actually felt.

However, the experiment showed that, “Consistently, receiving a compliment brightens people’s day much more than anticipated, leaving them feeling better, and less uncomfortable, than givers expect.” And there you have it – be generous with your compliments, because they are appreciated more than you realize.

Research shows that compliments and gratitude have a mood-lifting effect. Sometimes, a compliment is exactly what someone needs. It can increase motivation, contribute to productivity, strengthen confidence, and cause a ripple effect. Those who receive compliments are motivated to give more compliments to others.

Lifehack.org shares seven reasons to give a compliment:

Compliments are FREE!
What goes around comes around. When you give a compliment, you’re more than likely going to get one in return.
Sincere compliments build trust.
Kindness doesn’t actually kill. Kindness could quite possibly kill a bad mood or a bad memory, but it will not kill you or the person on the other end of the kindness, thankfully.
Compliments spark creativity.
Smiling burns calories. Smiling often leads to laughing, which burns even more calories!
It takes the focus off of you. When you give a compliment, you’re shifting your attention from all the things going wrong in your day and putting it on helping make someone else’s day a little sunnier.