Today marks World Kindness Day 2020, which I think is really important to take stock of given the crazy world we’re living in at the moment. With the ongoing pandemic, political turmoil and increasing levels of unemployment it’s more important than ever to be kind to each other.
Just take a moment to think, have you been kind to someone today? Has someone been kind to you?
Kindness is defined in the Oxford Dictionary as “the quality of being friendly, generous and considerate“. Being friendly is something that’s so simple for us to do, yet so often we’re so wrapped up in our own situation we don’t realise we aren’t being friendly. I always love the quote from Mari Gayatri Stein, “Better to be the one who smiled than the one who didn’t smile back”. Even just a simple smile at the bus driver, checkout cashier or waitress can really boost people’s moods and it such a simple outward display of kindness. You’ll find once you shift your mindset into displaying more outward friendly emotions that your overall mood will raise, acts of kindness and positivity really do make you feel better about yourself.
Generous is an easy adjective to dismiss by saying you can’t afford to be kind in that sense…however being generous isn’t just about money, it can also be relating to your time. Are you that friend that people feel they can talk to about their problems and you really listen to them? Or do you sit and participate in the conversation, maybe distracted by your phone, just so you can respond? Giving someone your true time is one of the greatest gifts you can give, and this is totally free! Make sure you are generous with your time, whether that is by taking time to speak properly with your friends or whether it’s volunteering for a charity.
Ah, kindness. What a simple way to tell another struggling soul that there is love to be found in the world.
A. A. Milne
There are so many things you can do as random acts of kindness, from making the effort to greeting everyone when you go into the office (maybe not at the moment!), to paying for the person’s coffee who’s behind you in the line. You can visit Kindness UK’s website for a list of great ideas for kind acts to carry out both today and in the upcoming weeks and months (http://kindnessuk.com/individuals.php).
This weekend I am making up and sending out some pick me up’s for a couple of people…life’s tough at the moment and sometimes all you need is a little note to tell you that you’re an amazing human. The key concept with this behaviour is that you shouldn’t expect something in return when you do this, it is a selfless act and the benefit that you get is the satisfaction that your kindness will pick people up.
I would love to hear about your random acts of kindness…do you do any volunteering or support any charities? There are so many things you can do that don’t cost you any money, it really is just a case of having a think about something you can do for someone else. At the moment these acts will really have such an impact on people, I think it’s so important that we do what we can to help each other out and get through this situation together. The more kind acts you carry out and gratitude that you show, the easier it will become and you will really start to feel the benefits of increased happiness, raised self-esteem and reduced stress in your daily life.
Please feel free to email me on thefemaleengineerblog@gmail.com or reach out to me in the comments section.
Emilie
The Female Engineer
