The Power of One Small Act of Kindness

Did you know that negativity bias is an evolutionary mechanism? We as humans evolved to focus on negative events to survive. Being more attentive to negative events, like a lion for example, played a useful role in survival. 

Most of us are not going to be attacked by a lion. But right now, you might be feeling emotions ranging from sadness, anger, fear or even despair. I get that and I am with you. And I also want to have the energy and power that I need to move forward.

We can access more power when we are using positivity. I am not suggesting that everything will be roses. We can temper our negativity by focusing on the positive moments in our lives. Doing so brings back our power to act.

One of my favorite ways to switch from negativity is through the action of kindness.

We see a lot of negativity on the news, online, out in the world. AND there is a lot of kindness too, but it just doesn’t get as much notice. When we pay attention to the kindness around us, when we take the time to act kindly toward others, we help amplify kindness, which supports positivity and connection and power. I did not come up with this idea. There have been many research papers on the power of kindness and how kindness can help us act even in hard times.

One act of kindness can have widespread ripple effects. 

Think about the last time somebody did something kind for you. Take a minute to really remember how it felt. Maybe it didn’t seem like a big deal to the person doing the kind thing, but it made a difference for you. 

Acts of kindness don’t have to be huge to have an impact. Very simple things can make a difference, here are a few simple examples: 

• Smiling at people you see on your morning walk or just saying hello 
• A warm hug
• Holding the door for someone
• Sending a text to wish someone a good day or to help cheer them up 
• Offering help when you see somebody struggling to reach or carry something 
• Saying thank you
• Delivering a meal to a friend going through a hard time
• Paying for the coffee of the person behind you in line
• Being kind and caring to yourself

These can boost somebody’s day, and your day, make it a little brighter or easier.

From One Act of Kindness to a Daily Practice

If one act of kindness has a big impact, imagine what one after another can do. Imagine having more energy to act, more connection to buoy you up.

See what happens when you choose one act of kindness every day for a week. To help you do it, I’m sharing the Kindness Challenge, starting November 18. 

I’ll send you an email every day for 5 days with a suggestion of a way to express and experience more kindness. I hope you’ll join in. 

We can all use more kindness, so if you’ve done this free challenge before, I invite you to join again — maybe ask a friend to join too. More kindness is good for you and for the world. 

To get the Kindness Challenge emails, make sure you are subscribed to my newsletter. If you are subscribed, you don’t have to do anything but watch your inbox starting 11/18.  If you’re not subscribed (or you aren’t sure), just fill out the signup form below and click ‘submit’.