One of the deepest of all our needs is the desire to be appreciated for our own happiness. The person who says,"I do not care what anybody thinks about me" is really self - deceived. There are some people who hoard appreciation as a miser hoards his money. It is unfair to withhold sincere appreciation from those around us to whom it is justly due.
                                                Appreciation need to be given honestly if everyone is to be enriched. A friend makes an excellent speech at a dinner party and we do not take the trouble to congratulate him. he goes away feeling miserable that his speech was a flop. Although a student is doing well at school and gets good marks for his homework,his parents do not display the slightest interest in his success.He hungers for the appreciation they withhold. He feels dissatisfied. Few of us withhold food from a hungry person, yet many of us withhold appreciation from the person who hungers for it. Why is this?. It is partly due to the mistaken idea that appreciation makes people conceited: "If I appreciate my friend, it will make him swollen - headed and I should be doing him no real service". This is not true. It is often assumed that only outstanding achievements are worthy of appreciation. But these are rare in life. If we are to develop the habit of expressing appreciation , then we must look out for the little things. Congratulate your friend on his excellent handwriting. Compliment your hostess on the quality of her cakes. Appreciation for little things, if warmly and sincerely expressed,can give happiness. The effects of appreciation are two - fold. In the first place, it provides happiness both to the one who receives and to the one who gives. The housewife will glow with satisfaction if her husband says " that was a lovely meal, dear". Not only do we give pleasure by expressing appreciation. It comes back and gives joy to the one who has expressed it for in making others happy we increase our own happiness.
                                            Appreciation does more than giving pleasure. It acts as a stimulant to further achievement. If we are criticized in the negative, we feel disheartened. If we are appreciated for any achievement, it rouses in us a strong determination to excel still more in that area. People work better in an atmosphere of appreciation. The reason for this is not far to seek.We always do better in any field when we act with confidence. When we appreciate people, we increase their confidence with our assurance that they are doing well. Consequently , they are able to do better still under the stimulus of appreciation. Appreciation is needed in every sphere of our lives. It is easy to take for granted the people nearest and dearest to us. Many a husband, many a wife, many a child has an unsatisfied longing for appreciation. And the tragedy is that very often the appreciation is there, but is never expressed. For it is not invisible appreciation, but appreciation put into words and deeds alone can satisfy.
                                    Tell your boy that it is a good map he has drawn . Tell your daughter you like the pullover she has knitted. Admire your wife's new dress. Compliment your husband on his labours in the garden. Why be silent when a few words can give pleasure and satisfy a basic need of human nature?. On the other hand, we do not need to know people well in order to express appreciation. Everyone likes a compliment, and we need not hesitate to appreciate even a stranger. If you see an attractive display in a shop window, why not compliment the manager as you make your purchase over the counter? It will cost you nothing and it will give him something worth more than money.
                                    Why not express gratitude to the shop assistant who has been attentive to your needs? Why not stay behind a moment to thank the public speaker who has interested you? Selfless appreciation we give to those we have never met before and may never meet again, is a fine quality. Let us acquire the habit of giving sincere appreciation in all conditions. To  the successful because they need it - to the unsuccessful because they also need it to succeed. One of the finest ways of expressing appreciation is that of passing on a word of praise spoken by someone else . " I was at a party last evening and Ravi told me that you are the best speaker in a Rotary Meeting". This is a double compliment, for it comes both from the person who originally made it and from the conversationalist who was generous to pass it on. The art of appreciation needs to be learned. Giving appreciation, unfortunately, does not come naturally to most of us as giving criticism. But like other habits , it can be developed through constant practice.