Kindness pays?

Growing up, almost all of us are taught to be kind to people, regardless of financial status, race, age or gender, so from a very young age we’ve all had an understanding of the word itself but just for the sake of this post let’s have a look at what the dictionary tells us:

Kind, adjective –
having or showing a friendly, generous, and considerate nature.

As you can see it’s pretty straight forward so I’ve probably wasted 2 seconds of your time (of which you’ll never get back, let that shxt sink in *Drake voice*) making you read that but I want to highlight something that I feel we often disregard.

A little disclaimer before we proceed, I’m not writing this to make you feel bad about the times you’ve been unkind or inconsiderate because then I’d be the person everyone talks about, you know the one with the log in their eye 😒😂 I’m just merely sharing something I, myself, have just recently learned.

As much as being kind means being considerate, generous and friendly, it means alot of different things to alot of different people, for some it is shown through their actions, for others their words then others their intentions but can one really exist without the others? Does offering words of upliftment make up for the fact that we rudely disregard certain people because we’re not interested in them? Does the fact that we lend a helping hand to those in need make up for the fact that we are often harsh with our words? Is doing the right thing with the “wrong intention” okay because it’s still the right thing at the end of the day?

Don’t get me wrong, NONE of us are perfect and if you know me you’d know that I preach this ALL the time but what I’m trying to say is that we sometimes need to realise that being kind when it suits us or to a select group of people is not really being kind at all. For most of us it’s quite simple being kind to our friends, family and the people we know, as well being kind to someone when we’ve had a good day, when we’re in a good mood or when it benefits us ( I’m talking about more than just that heartwarming feeling 😂😂 you get,if you know what I mean) but what about when the person is a stranger, someone we aren’t expected to be kind to because they add no value to our lives, what about when we’ve been having a bad day, when the other person isn’t being kind towards us and when a person has wronged us? Is it justifiable for us to be not so kind ?

This may come as a bit of an anti-climax because, honestly, I don’t really have the answers to these questions and opinions will probably differ depending on how you choose to view the different situations but what I can say, and the sole purpose for this post, is that regardless of the circumstances always try to be & stay kind. I know it sounds cliche’, perhaps like an overplayed Barney mantra but there’s simply no other way to put it.

Everyone you meet is going through something, big or small and there might not even be a justifiable reason for why they are the way they are to you or why they’ve done the things they’ve done but the way you react could change EVERYTHING. I’m not saying, be timid or allow yourself to be trampled over but approaching a situation with kindness just means not allowing certain situations or someone else’s behaviour to alter yours and the way you react, it’s simply not giving that situation or person control.

By being kind with your words you could change someone’s day, people process things differently so sometimes what you say to someone may never cross your mind again but could keep someone up for weeks. Be kind in your actions and you could change someone’s life, a simple act of kindness goes a longer way than you think, sometimes, taking a little away from the ‘lot’ that you have would result in someone once having nothing to now having something (and this refers to more that just money). Be kind in your intentions, this does a world of good for your conscience, it gives you the ability to sleep at night knowing that everything you’ve done was never done with ill intent & honestly with all the troubles in life, you need your beauty sleep 😂

Once again, NONE of us are perfect so we’ll all be mean at a point in time, we’ll be inconsiderate and we’ll say or do things that don’t reflect our character but as we continue to grow everyday, having this type of attitude towards people will bring you peace and an unimaginable joy, being kind to people and knowing how to approach situations is expressing the often forgotten quality of empathy. It’s quite simple, if you wouldn’t want it done or said to you, try not to do it to others ( note I said TRY because you are going to stumble along the way 😂).

We could all agree the world is not really an easy place to live in so why be someone that’s hard to be around?

Be kind.
Till next time xx