【推荐1】The only words you need to say after receiving a compliment (赞美) are “thank you”. But you know that's easier said than done.

There are many reasons why you have a hard time accepting compliments.     1     It's a three step process. First, believe what people tell you. If you're still having a hard time taking the compliment, double check. And if it's still hard to accept then you'll have to check yourself.

    2     For example, if you're six feet tall and I say, “Wow, you're tall! ” I'm being honest. I'm five foot nine, so plenty of people are tall compared to me. I'm expressing that subjectively, from my shorter vantage point, you are tall. I'm not saying everyone would agree with me. Just like if I say City of God is a great movie, I'm not saying you have to think it's a great movie.

You have to listen carefully to compliments. It's not always obvious if you're being complimented for something only others can observe. If you are five foot six inches tall, and weigh seventy pounds, I would say you are slim. But if you are comparing yourself to someone who is shorter, and weighs five pounds less than you, you might call yourself plump. In this extreme example, the outside perspective is more accurate than the internal one.       3    

If you're still struggling to accept a compliment, you don't just have to take someone at their word. It can be hard to accept an opinion when it's the opposite of yours, so call in reinforcements. Ask someone else what they think.     4     You can ask two or three or four more people if two isn't enough.

    5     If you mislead or lie to people about your opinions, then it's not surprising that you have a hard time trusting that people's compliments are genuine. Be more honest with people around you, and you'll find it much easier to believe what people say about you.

【推荐2】A new documentary called Silver Surfers shows the inspiring story of a group of teens helping elderly people to improve the quality of their lives by teaching them how to make use of the Internet. Rosemary Raynes, the director of the documentary, got the idea when talking to her sisters Poppy and Amy about a project they had started several years before in Kinston, Canada. The two teenagers had a clear goal: they wanted to help elderly people to feel more connected to other people, through the use of the Internet.

The two teenagers started the project after seeing how the Internet had changed their own grandparents’ lives. Their grandparents could use the Internet at a basic level but wanted to become more skillful. After the two girls had given them a few basic IT lessons, they were able to use the computer confidently, and became eager users of Facebook and email.

The two students were so inspired by the success that they got several of their friends to join them. Together, they started to visit a local home for elderly people. Many of the people there couldn’t even switch on a computer without help. But the young people were amazed how much they had learned after only a few lessons.

It’s interesting to see how the silver surfers featured in the documentary all had very different interests. Some of them wanted to use Facebook to stay in touch with family members. Others were eager to get ideas for travelling, playing an instrument or cooking.

Through the project, silver surfers have got good results: 89-year-old Sheila, together with a friend, managed to create a YouTube cooking class; 93-year-old Marilyn succeeded in making a rap video; Albert, 89, used the Internet to reconnect online with people he hadn’t seen for many years.

The project has been met with great interest in several countries, and a number of follow-up projects have been started. They are all aimed at helping elderly people to explore the benefits of technology, have fun, and stay in touch with others—thanks to a wonderful project by two teenage girls.