A Fool for a Compliment

Photo by Jay Tamboli, Flickr

How would you feel if a box on a random street corner dished you out a compliment? Would you feel the world is a better place or would you be insulted that you were just handed an empty compliment?

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Below from an online article by Neil Woodburn

The world would be a much better place if artist Tom Greaves' Compliment Machine was installed on street corners from Los Angeles to Beijing.

The Compliment Machine is part of a Washington D.C. art exhibit along 14th Street sponsored by SiteProjects DC. Fifteen other artists have contributed their visions for making Washington D.C. a better place but it is Greaves' installment that has everyone talking.

The idea of the Compliment Machine is very simple. The five-foot tall box stands on the street corner and dispenses compliments to random passers-by.

"You smell good," "People are drawn to your positive energy," and "You are on a constant quest for knowledge" are just some of the fortune cookie-like salutations elicited from the strange box.

People love it, going out of their way for daily doses of self-affirmation and positive motivation. I sure hope some of the local politicians stay far away from this automated sycophant.

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As for me there is shallowness in a compliment given to you when there are no real teeth behind it. The meaningless bits of praise that people say to each other in the hallways at work are pointless and a waste of time. Why do we feel compelled to hand out random complements like water?  If you do not mean it ~ do not say it!