One day, I heard American boy say to a Chinese girl student,"You speak very good English. " But the girl answered, "No, no. My English is very poor. " The (foreign) was quite surprised at the answer. Thinking he had not made himself understood or the girl had not heard him (clear), he said, "Yes, indeed, you speak very well. " But the girl still kept(say),"No. " In the end, the American boy could not understand and didn't know what to say.
What's wrong with the girl's answer? She didn't accept a compliment (称赞) in the same way as the American people do. She should answer, "Thank you" instead of "No".
She really understood what the American boy had said, she thought she should be modest. In the west, people will feel proud and confident when they (praise). So if someone says the dishes you have cooked are very delicious, you should say, "Thank you. "
In our country, we think being modest is a virtue (美德) and being proud is a bad thing, but my opinion, being confident does not mean being proud, so sometimes you should be confident instead of being modest. If you are modest and say, "No, I'm afraid I can't do it well" while working in a (west) country, the others may think that you really cannot do it. If you often say "No", you (look) down upon by others. When asking for a job, if one says something like "Yes, I can certainly do it" instead of "Let me have a try", he or she will succeed in getting it. So in the west, you should be brave ( show) your self-confidence.
