May is Mental Health Awareness Month and the theme is Kindness… #KindnessMatters!
Kindness can be defined, simply, as “the intention to be of benefit to others, motivated by genuine warm feelings”.
We know through our professional coaching, leadership, and organizational work that kindness matters. At the very least, it creates a positive environment at work or within communities, which supports psychological safety – one of the foundations of helping people grow and be at their best.
How can you practice kindness? Here are 3 tips to start with:
- Start with yourself: We’ve all heard the “Oxygen Mask Theory”. Secure your oxygen mask before helping others. Similarly, being kind to others starts with being kind to yourself. Give yourself a break and use mistakes and difficulties as an opportunity to grow.
- Connect with kindness: Especially in tough times where we are expected to maintain physical distancing, reach out to others (even virtually!) and do or express something kind to them. Rediscover the original use of your phone (voice connection).
- Write it down: Some people have “Kindness Journals” where they record accounts of kindness that they were given or received, how you and others felt, and what happened. The act of writing these kind acts and reflecting upon them brings them more into our awareness. The more we reflect on the consequences of kindness, for us and others, the more we will notice its positive benefits.
I was featured this month in the City Mental Health Alliance HK COVID-19 Weekly Bulletin. Here’s the video that I’ve shared with them. I hope you could watch it and take away some useful insights.
Would you like to share some of your kindness tips? Please drop them in the comment section!
