Make Kindness the Norm, by Marc LeVine

“How do we change the world? One random act of kindness at a time” —Morgan Freeman

We are living in very challenging times.?The news reports we get are far from uplifting. They often put us in a foul mood. ?In fact, recent studies show that a majority of Americans are gripped by anger, grievance and severe depression over relationships, jobs, personal finances, the nation’s politics, and world affairs. It is not healthy to be miserable and dismissive of any form of optimism.

Negativism is Bad for Your Health

Persistent negativism eventually takes its toll on the human body.?It enables chronic stress, which can affect our body's natural hormonal balance. Stress can also reduce those brain chemicals that trigger happiness in us all. ?The effect of being influenced by severe negativity also damages our immune systems and has the potential to decrease our lifespan. ?None of this is good news if you want to live a longer and happier life.

Negativism is Bad for Your Attitude

On the social side, another detrimental effect of extreme negativity is the poisoning of positive attitude. ?When we are absolutely miserable, it becomes much harder to show others any caring or kindness. ?Some may find that – over time - life has “soured” them and they begin to withdraw from most social interaction.?They essentially stop liking people. In short, they may begin to see their fellow human-beings simply as competitors for food, water, air, money, and status. They become bitter and mean-spirited towards people they now consider unimportant to them and or a threat. It's that 90's expression narcissists created - I don't know you, so I don't care.

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How does this happen??Why do some people become so disengaged from society? Why is being kind to others so difficult for some people?

It is a trust factor. We are wired to think bad of others before we decide we like them. Studies show that humans are born with a negative bias that tends to consider most glasses half empty before thinking them half full.?Say you go to an upscale restaurant and see a cockroach running up the wall. What are you likely to remember about that restaurant, first??The beautiful restaurant atmosphere or the scurrying roach??That's right - "Ewwww!" Staying with this same example, more people are likely to complain about an unpleasant dining experience than race to give a great meal rave reviews.?This is a fact. So, it is not very difficult to turn away from positivity towards negativity in any situation when such a natural bias exists.

Try A Little Kindness

We need a lot more kindness in our world and particularly in the workplace, where we are expected to work well within productive teams that benefit the customer, the company and our co-workers.?When we bring negativity to the office every day, it becomes increasingly more difficult to avoid creating a toxic environment for ourselves and for others.?That benefits no one.

How can we introduce more KINDNESS into our daily mindset?

1.??????Reject Toxicity.??Rid yourself of all toxic and negative influences (broadcast, print and social media) that specifically create a darker version of our world. Favor realism and insist on facts over opinion, spin and or commentary. Don't allow others to "poison the water" before you taste it. ?And - by the way – eliminate all toxic people, too! They will only drag you down.

2.??????See the Good in People. ?We all belong to humanity and deserve to be treated with the same level of respect, kindness and caring. Understand that most people are good people. It’s probably our negativity bias that lets the one cockroach on the wall define the exquisite and excellent restaurant. Few restaurants can insure that we'll never find a roach there. Remember the cockroach analogy and that negative bias is always in play.

3.??????Kindness is NOT Weakness. No one expects us to be fools and be taken by frauds. We must always be careful and cautious in our dealings, but should never let negative bias prevent us from being kind to others fearing they might consider our kindness a weak point. Good people appreciate kindness.

4.??????Smile into the Mirror.?Put on a bright red “clown nose” if you must and behold your jovial self in the mirror. Smile! This will elicit good feelings you can carry around with you all day. Be kind always.

5.??????Commit Random Acts of Kindness.?Start small by doing one nice thing each day for someone else. ?Enjoy the awesome feeling you get from what you do for others.?Like an elixir, the good feelings will eventually multiply.

6.???????Teach Your Children Well. Kindness must be planted deeply in the soil of humanity and nurtured well to grow and prosper. We are much better people when we are most kind to others. Model good behavior to all and it will almost certainly catch on.

Kindness fits well with the many other "people skills" that prove we value human relations and can accomplish more - together.

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The Author

Listen to Marc's latest interview on “Failing for You” with Jordan Yates

Marc LeVine is a graduate of Syracuse (NY) University with a degree in Industrial Psychology, Marc is currently Talent Acquisitions and Learning and Development Lead at Thermo Systems. He is the recipient of the Excellence in Talent Acquisitions Award from HR Awards in 2021.

His prior employment includes senior Human Resources and Staffing Industry management roles with Edgewood Properties in Piscataway, NJ, Brickforce Staffing in Edison, NJ, InfoPro Inc. in Woodbridge NJ and Plainsboro, NJ and Harvard Industries in Farmingdale, NJ, a former Fortune 500 company. He also served as Director of Human Resources for New Jersey Press, the parent company of the Asbury Park Press, Home News and Tribune and WKXW-NJ101.5. Earlier in his career, Marc served as Director of Career Services and Placement at Union Technical Institute in Eatontown and Neptune, NJ. In addition, Marc owned and operated Integrity Consulting Associates, a New Jersey based Human Resources and Social Media Marketing firm for 11 years. Marc also served as Council President in his hometown of Freehold Borough, NJ