Look, everyone loves being complimented...but sometimes a single compliment really sticks with you. Heck, it may even help shape how you see yourself.
So this week when Reddit user MostarRed asked, "Men of Reddit, what is that one compliment you got that you'll never forget?" The responses were funny, heart-felt, and genuinely PURE.
Here are just a few of the absolute best stories:
1. "I was out back building a new deck on my house when my daughter came outside to tell me she thought I was doing a good job and that she was proud of me for being able to build a deck."
2. "I'd been walking the same route for over a year for exercise. I had lost about 120 pounds when, one day, I heard a woman's voice I didn't recognize call out to me from her backyard. 'I'm proud of you, you have lost a lot of weight!' I haven't seen her since, but that helped me stay motivated."
3. "Some little girl in a cart at a grocery store once said, 'He's pretty' about me to her mother. I could hear her mother telling her 'thats not what we say to boys.' I didn't say anything, but I should've told her that it's okay to call anyone pretty."
4. "The last day I saw my grandpa he said, 'Oh, I'm so glad you're here, this is the best day of my life.'"
5. "I delivered a pizza to two drunk chicks and, as I was walking away, they yelled that I 'should turn the AC on in the car.' I turned around right as one yelled, 'CAUSE YOU'RE LOOKIN' PRETTY HOT' as she slammed the door. That was a good day."
6. "I was working in a restaurant and told a guest that I would have the bartender make them a really annoying off-menu cocktail. I put in the order and begged her to make this cocktail that I KNOW she hated dealing with. She looked at me, sighed, and said: 'That grin should be illegal' and made the drink. Still makes me smile to myself."
7. "I'm a little self-conscious about my laugh because it literally sounds like a dying hyena, but I've had a couple girls tell me 'OMG, I love your laugh' and 'You have the best laugh!' That always puts a smile on my face thinking about that."
8. "Once a blind girl who I helped to walk her place told me that she could feel my 'very good vibes' and that she was comfortable walking with me because of that. I won't forget that."
9. "A girl I worked with once asked if I could give her a ride home because her ride wasn't able to pick her up. I did and asked her out to dinner, which she agreed to. While we were at dinner, she confessed: 'I didn't actually need a ride home. I just wanted a ride from a cute guy.' I rode that compliment for months."
10. "When I got my Master's degree, a professor of mine came over to congratulate me after the ceremony. She said, 'You didn't speak much in my classes but, when you did, I always listened because I knew what you said would matter.' It was a really simple statement at the time, but I think about it often."
11. "I was at a funeral and my old school bus driver's wife said 'You must be one of those (my last name). I knew it when I saw your eyes.' It made sense to me, my whole family has large brown eyes and I’m always recognized for that, but then she said, 'You all have kind eyes. You can tell by looking at a (my last name) that they're genuine and good people.'"
12. "I was grocery shopping with my wife and this adorable little old lady stopped me and said, 'You're so handsome, you should be a movie star!' I looked over my shoulder to make sure she was talking to me. It was very sweet and totally made my day."
13. "I was at Starbucks and this attractive barista asked for my name to put on the cup. I told her, but when I got my cup it said 'handsome guy :).' Made my week!"
14. "My uncle was a world-renowned chef. He cooked for kings, queens, and every US president from Nixon to Clinton. I grilled him a venison steak once and he said, 'Wow, this is really good!' I will wear that as a badge of honor for the rest of my days."
15. "I lost my virginity to this girl and she just looked at me afterwards and said, 'You’re beautiful.' I’m never going to forget that one."
16. "As a school therapy counselor, the vast majority of students I regularly work with have major family issues. Some of them hang in my office after school to avoid going home. If I have nothing to do for the rest of the day, I’ll chat them up for a few hours. Well, I’d been talking to this one boy for nearly two years, and he told me that I 'felt like home.'"
17. "'You’re really funny. You should talk to people more.' I have social anxiety, so that was the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me, IMO."
18. "A female friend once told me 'You’re such a good guy. You’re going to be the type of dad that braids his daughter’s hair.'"
19. "When I was in the second grade I wrote a poem. After I submitted it, my teacher pulled me aside and told me he thought it was really good and wanted to submit it to a national poetry contest for children. I was ecstatic and, although I didn't get featured in the book, having that teacher compliment my writing at such a young age had a huge impact on me pursuing writing throughout my life and eventually getting a degree in it."
20. "I made a joke where I implied that no one thought I was cool until I got tattooed, and my ex dropped the most sincere, 'I've always thought you were cool.' Sounds a little lame, but the way she said it lit me up."
21. "I held the door open for a little girl and her mother at the local Target, gave them a little bow (more of a head nod) and the girl said, 'Mom look, he bowed! He's like a knight!'"
So yeah, there you have it! What's the best/most memorable compliment YOU'VE ever received? Share your story in the comments below!
Some thread entries have been edited for length or clarity. H/T Reddit.