This post hit home for me too. I still catching myself saying ‘Thank you, but…’ then ending with some joke about myself or poking fun at my abilities. It’s a terrible habit I’ve developed but am working to overcome. I have also felt that if someone compliments me, I should immediately compliment them back or give someone else the credit. Thank you Keith, for your encouragement and thank you Ann for your response. Henri Nouwen wrote something really profound on being a good receiver… I’ll have to find that again…

Fortunately, a friend at church observed this tendency of mine to deflect sincere affirmations and told me the same thing you just explained. “Just say ‘thank you,’ Ann. Let the person show appreciation and say what they feel.”

So I started to practice it, but it was so hard. I wanted to say, “Thank you, *but*….” Eventually I trained myself to just say a simple “thank you” with a grateful smile and leave it at that.

Reading this is a reminder that I should share with my kids how to receive affirmation, so they don’t have to be told that they are a “stingy receiver!”