January can be a tricky month at the best of times. The days are short and dark. It’s cold. It’s a long time until the next fun celebrations. And don’t even get me started on the pressure of new year’s resolutions to become the ‘new you’.
It is likely to be even trickier this year, with all the challenges so many of us are facing.
But don’t despair. If we know something is tricky, we have a better chance of doing something about it. We can find our own ways to be resilient and keep our chins up in difficult times.
This year I’d like to suggest that you add kindness to your list of coping mechanisms for January. It’s a great source of positivity and hope, something which is particularly welcome at this point in time.
There are two aspects to kindness that I think are especially helpful just now. One is carrying out acts of kindness yourself and the second one is noticing the kind things that other people are doing.
Being kind
Think about the last time you did something kind and remember how that made you feel. Just the other day I called out to someone on the street to tell them they had dropped their glove. Seeing the delight on their face that they hadn’t lost their hand-warmer made me feel pleased too.
As well as knowing this impact anecdotally, there is an increasing body of scientific research that shows that being kind has positive effects on your physical and mental health. When you help a neighbour carry their shopping from the car or let someone in front of you in a queue, you are getting a boost of positive chemicals in your brain.
Seeing kindness around you
Every day, people all around us are quietly getting on with being kind to others, not making a fuss, just doing it. A really easy way to give yourself hope and positivity is to make the effort to notice what’s happening. We have to make a conscious decision to do this because so much of the news we consume is negative.
But once we have decided there is a different way, we can see what the majority of people are really like. In the last few days, I have spotted:
Someone helping a neighbour to take their bins in after they had been emptied
Someone posting a supportive comment on social media (actually, I see this one a lot, directly opposite to the reputation that social media has)
Someone picking up litter in their community
All of these things have made me smile and given me hope.
Over to you
So why not give it a try yourself this January? Do something kind. Make a deliberate choice to see kindness around you. Please get in touch to tell me what you see and do.
I wish you all a happy new year, filled with the positivity of kindness.
Sarah Browning is a Kindness Cheerleader, Communicator and Strategist. For more details, log on to: www.timeforkindness.co.uk
