If compliments feel fake, try saying “thanks” and nothing else. Accepting them is a skill you can practice.

Deflecting praise can feel like modesty, but it usually comes from somewhere else: taking it in would mean believing it, and that feels risky. So you make a joke, or point out the flaw, or hand the credit away. The person who said something kind ends up having to argue with you.

Try the one-word version this week. Someone says the shot was good, or the essay was good, and you answer with thanks and stop there. It will feel strange for about three seconds, and then it will not.