Other People Matter

On the home page of my website is a collection of images that represent my core beliefs and basic assumptions. These are beliefs I try desperately to weave into my daily living and importantly, in my counselling and coaching work. The belief attached to the beautiful image above is ‘Service’.  The act of helping another person or taking part in a random, or not so random, act of kindness is one of the most valuable things you can do in life.

These acts can be remarkably simple yet the amount of happiness it generates and perpetuates, is completely disproportionate to the amount of effort it takes.

Chatting to a 92-year-old lady the other day, she remarked on how she feels sorry for her great-grand daughter having to grow up in the current global climate.  Not even World Wars stack up to what we’re living through right now?!  Either way, what she meant was we’re living in confusing times. Scary and often crazy times. And the 24 hours news cycle does NOT help matters.

One way we can reclaim power, freedom and opportunity is through acts of kindness. They’re a way to bring positivity into our world. A tangible practice to connect with others in fractured communities. You can feel your own strength and expand your sense of self-worth.  Kindness gives a sense of purpose.

But if acts of kindness are about making us feel better, doesn’t that contradict the reason for doing it? Not necessarily. With every act of kindness, you’re amplifying love in the world, even if at first, it’s to feel good.

When we teach our children about serving one another, we pass on lessons in responsibility, resilience, compassion and many other skills related to emotional intelligence.

For ideas about random acts of kindness and plenty more reasons why we should make this a habit for life, see https://www.randomactsofkindness.org

Be kind where possible. It’s always possible.      Dalai Lama