The Kindness Effect

When was the last time you experienced kindness? At the store, coffee shop, or maybe from a friend or relative? How did it make you feel? Were you pleasantly surprised, maybe even moved to give back yourself? Kindness is a powerful force. It can jar us out of even the darkest of places and can uncover hope within our storms.

“ It’s almost like having a superpower, no one knows it’s there until they experience it.”

Once you start practicing kindness it’s hard to go back. It’s almost like having a superpower, no one knows it’s there until they experience it. A secret that can truly change the world. But what gives it so much power? What makes it transformative? I think at its core, kindness is not selfish but selfless. This stands in stark contrast to our society so focused on self and taking rather than giving. Maybe part of this power lies in the fact that since so few people utilize it, it becomes special. It moves you.

Even though kindness thrives on selflessness, the boomerang effect is hard to understate. Some call it luck, others karma but no matter how you say it, kindness has a way of coming back to you. Now let me be clear, I don’t think this is, or should be motivation for being kind. You don’t give to receive but give without thought of return. I can’t, however, ignore the boomerang effect. There is nothing I have done in kindness that I regret doing. Zero, zippo, none. It’s much more fun to live this way, giving instead of receiving.

So how do you start living in the kindness economy? It’s quite simple really, start looking for opportunities to give. It’s amazing how much kindness you can spread if you start looking for it.