7. “You look pretty!”
“Who doesn’t feel happy when someone tells you that you look pretty?” commented a Japanese woman in her 20s. Other Japanese women in their 20s supported this view that “it adds to her confidence” and “direct compliments are preferable to indirect compliments.” A woman in her 30s also said, “Whatever their age, women enjoy being told that they are pretty.” These opinions reveal that “you look pretty” is a very popular compliment among Japanese women. It’s equally important to note that women in different age cohorts prefer different approaches. For example, a Japanese teen wants a guy to “act shy as he says it.” A Japanese woman in her 20s wants him to “be smooth,” and a Japanese woman in her 30s wants him to “let her know early on in their interaction.”