Remember the feeling of a recent example when someone acted kindly towards you – you may have felt moved, grateful, seen, hopeful, inclined to smile.
This week is Mental Health Awareness week in the UK with the theme of kindness.
There is a body of evidence that demonstrates being kind to others by performing an altruistic act positively impacts our mental health.
What a great go-to concept for uplifting ourselves and others.
We all know and experience the social media landscape with it’s peaks of innovation, toxic wastelands and forests of inspiring and feel-good posts, with all manner of diversity between. So how are you being kind in this virtual world? Are your online contributions building on supporting others, connecting, kindness?
There are acts of kindness that are simply remembering our manners and saying ‘thank you’, acknowledging people we care about or inspire us or witnessing someone’s achievement. There’s another deeper layer of kindness we can express through paying close attention and taking time to understand what someone is communicating; expressing a counter-perspective with respect and openness; following through with an action that will support someone in moving forward. These acts take more time and consideration then pressing ‘like’ but yield greater rewards through nurturing genuine connections.
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