Always worth mentioning: "The Inverse Power of Praise" http://nymag.com/news/features/27840/
I do not appreciate compliments anymore. I haven't for a long time. I have a complicated view I don't really wish to explain right now (maybe I'll write a blog post later) about why compliments are almost insulting, especially insulting by those people who care about "you" and who give them often (Sorry for that passive voice).
My thoughts all stemmed from the idea that compliments make people worse at what they do. At BEST they make the person continue at the same speed with a boost of moral. Imho.
That is, hearing,"You're so smart," so many times, from teachers, other students, coworkers, bosses, etc., cultivates a sense of elitism and a shock when something is actually difficult.
You're also bound by the same emotions as most other people. If you're a particularly aggressive or irritable person, imagine being surrounded by people who keep making mistakes because they're stupid. If you turn it outward, you're impatient at best and a bully at worst. If you turn it inward, you're stressed out, anxious, and depressed.
All of that said, being a professional programmer was the most satisfying thing I've done. Unfortunately, I moved on precisely because of the above paragraph -- I had managers I felt were particularly dim.