It’s alright, no really, it’s pretty good. I don’t know if it’s an inherent British thing, but I find being self-effacing to be natural. I’ve also been noticing this in the way we talk about the band and also in some of my students. I try and instil in my students the confidence to say that they have played something well if they have. We all know when we’re happy with something we have done, it just appears that we are not comfortable saying it. Is there anything wrong with shouting about your successes? 

Part of the reason I like (some) Americans so much is that they aren’t afraid to nail their flags to the wall and say what they think, they will support something they like vehemently, they will tell you when something they have done is (in at least their own opinion) “awesome” but us Brits just don’t seem to get past something being just good. 

Do we have a higher benchmark or just a different scale of measurement? Or is it just me? My scale goes from Complete Rubbish to Decent and there’s about 5 steps in between. I feel that the negative side of the scale is pretty accurate. Complete rubbish, pony and not great are in there and they reflect how bad something is in my own mind but when we get past the tipping point into the positive then “it’s alright” means that I’ve enjoyed the experience, and “It’s really good” (even though I always make it sound sarcastic – but that’s for a different post) generally means I’ve just had one of the greatest experiences of my life. 

I’d love to know if its just me and my students, if it’s a cultural phenomenon for us Brits or does it extend to the rest of the world apart from our cousins in the U.S.A?