Big Things Come from Acts of Kindness

Who isn’t getting worn out from the constant barrage of less-than-inspiring news? Every week there’s another natural disaster, more civil unrest, or just crazy political stories that even a year ago we would have thought impossible.

If there’s one thing my work with organizations around the world shows me, it’s that your workers are desperate for good news.

And there really is a lot of good to find out there. Every day, people are doing wonderful things for their neighbors, friends and family. If we look a little closer, we can find these small acts of kindness all around us. And better yet, we can be a part of that good news ourselves.

A few examples:

A friend of mine said that her company just sent her an Uber Eats certificate for a free lunch, just to say thank you for all the good work she was doing from home. Her bosses knew she was keeping up her productivity and responsiveness, all while home schooling her two little kids. They wanted her to know they recognized and appreciated the extra effort she was making, and that small act went a long way to keeping her spirits up.

Another friend in Canada mentioned that his company sent out a $100 gift certificates to all its employees as an added bonus for Canadian Thanksgiving. Leaders received hundreds of thank-you notes from employees all over the country.

Just the other day a client sent me a handwritten note just to let me and my writing partner Adrian Gostick how much their company appreciated our virtual leadership workshop. It was specific and meaningful and made our day.

Finally, last night, a neighbor dropped off some cookies, which lifted all our spirits. It was such a simple act, and yet so thoughtful as we knew someone was thinking of us.

Small Acts of Kindness #SAOK go such a long way to brightening up what has become a very long year. So, here’s my charge: I’m on the lookout for stories of #SAOK. What small act has touched you recently that you could share? Or how have you brightened someone else’s day at work, at home, or school? My goal this week is to flood LinkedIn with positivity, with stories of kindness and caring.

Attach the hash tag #SAOK and let’s see if we can’t start something positive—a gratitude wave that will welcome in American Thanksgiving and the holiday season.

I hope you join me in setting a goal to be a little more kind, a little more grateful, and a lot more of service to our co-workers, friends and family in these coming days.

Looking forward to hearing your stories!

With gratitude,

Chester

Leading with Gratitude is LIVE streaming every Thursday at 1 pm ET.        

Leading with Gratitude streams LIVE every Thursday at 1 pm ET. Give me 30 min and I promise to bring you great information from amazing guests. I hope you'll check it out!

Thursday, Oct 29th?Sal Vergara?- Vice President & Managing Director/Human Capital & People Strategy Professional/Founder of hrQ In-Transformation Network Dallas/Co-Host of The DOPE Experience Podcast

Thursday, Nov 5th Eric Balance - host of the Resilient Minds Podcast. “My destiny is to bring that ability out of millions of brilliant creators and help them implement what is possible for the collective ripple effect to come for generations.”

Thursday, Nov 12th Glenn Lundy - Pioneer of the 800% Club, host of #riseandgrind, author, speaker

Thursday, Nov 19th John Strelecky - Writer, Traveler, Ponderer. Author of #1 Bestselling Why Cafe' and Big Five for Life series of books

Thursday, Nov 26th -

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

The Gratitude Journal?is your place to find tools to create an all-in culture, at work and at home.

I am excited and "grateful" to learn my "Gratitude Podcast" was picked up by iHeart Radio. To celebrate, I'm sharing one of my favorite episodes with industrial designer, Hartmut Esslinger.

Hartmut Esslinger founded esslinger design in the Black Forest of Germany, ushering in an era of emotional design in response to the mostly function-oriented products of the day. The firm became known for its work for German electronics brand WEGA and then Sony, generating more than 100 products, including the first standalone television set, the black-box Sony Trinitron, and the Walkman. Essingler went on to work with Steve Jobs for Apple for a decade and other illustrious organizations such as Microsoft, GE, Siemens, Motorola, Louis Vuitton and more. In 2018, Hartmut was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award for his contributions to the world.

Gostick & Elton have gone virtual!

For outside-the-box, virtual solutions, we have you covered! Christy can answer all your questions. [email protected]

Update on the FutureWork21 event. Adrian Gostick, my co-author, and I were in good company with this stellar lineup. It was amazing. If you want to tune in, here is the replay.

Chester Elton has spent two decades helping clients engage their employees to execute on strategy, vision, and values. His work is supported by research with more than 1 million working adults, revealing the proven secrets behind high-performance cultures and teams. They are the founders of The Culture Works, a global coaching, speaking, and training company.

Leading with Gratitude,?is available wherever you like to get your books. Visit?Leading with Gratitude?Book?for free resources including videos, podcast episodes, and more, to build a culture of gratitude.