The season for kindness
It’s that time of the year when we spend time with family and friends, spread cheer by giving and reaching out to people.
Sometimes I wonder – is there a season needed for kindness? Isn’t it good to always be kind? As the Dalai Lama says, ‘Be kind whenever it’s possible. It’s always possible’.
Inspired by these words, what if we were to embrace kindness throughout the year – and not just for a few days or for a season?
Kindness exudes warmth, makes one approachable and creates an openness that draws people. No wonder it is the ultimate soft skill. As I have come to realize, a quality like kindness can be inherent or learned. Many are born with natural compassion; others pick it up by observing and receiving kindness first hand and then continuing it.
It’s important that kindness isn’t mistaken for weakness. When someone displays kindness through a gesture, words or a decision, they are showing empathy and understanding – two major building blocks of kindness. Yet another building block of kindness is gratitude. A grateful person is more sensitive to his or her environment and therefore more thoughtful and kind.
Another reason why we should be rooting for kindness is that it is a strength. And a pretty valuable one at that. Kindness can inspire, hold together, lead and simply turn a situation around.
Kindness strengthens relationships, improves positivity, offers better health, and extends itself to our roles at work.
As a professional coach, I am very conscious of the role that kindness plays during coaching sessions. Being patient with every group member, drawing out the unsure or quiet ones, genuinely listening to what participants have to say, encouraging people to share their ideas, or ask a query – however inane it may seem – are the tiny specks of kindness that can take a coaching session from being good to being great.
In my experience I have found that participants in coaching sessions always remember displays of thoughtfulness however small they may seem. To cite an example, there was a workshop that I had conducted years ago for which attendance was declared compulsory by the company that I was doing it for. One of the participants seemed distracted and anxious. When I drew her aside and spoke with her, she said that she was unable to focus as her father had just been hospitalized. A quick call to the Manager was all it took for her to leave the workshop and be with her family. I assured her that she could continue with the workshop at a later time. It didn’t seem like a big deal, but later on she was profusely thankful and wrote me a touching note which I still cherish.
As we step into a new year, why not make kindness part of our lives in what we do and what we say and how we behave - through the year.
On that thought, I wish you a happy new year where you are led by kindness.
