Kindness has been proven to be good for your mental health. What we know about the brain and its neuro-chemical responses demonstrates that being kind to others is also good for our own well-being. It releases oxytocin, reduces stress and improves mood.
But what we need to stop doing is treating kindness as something that can go away. We need to see it as a practice, rather than an act of charity. And if we want change in our behaviour and the behaviour of other people, it starts with us. We should not just be kind when we are feeling like it – but also when we are not being treated kindly or even deservedly kind ourselves.
Being kind is not just about being socially acceptable. If you are feeling stressed, depressed, angry or anxious simply being kind can help improve your mental state. The more we are kind to others and ourselves, the better our mental health becomes.
6 Ways to Practice Kindness in Your Everyday Life
Some of these ways of practising kindness are easier than others, but all are worth it in the end. Here are 6 ways to practice kindness in your everyday life.
1. Smile whenever you can – Even a small smile can brighten someone’s day. Think about how a smile makes you feel. It’s hard to feel angry or upset when there is a smile on your face. One study in the American Journal of Public Health found that when a person has an uplifting interaction with another person, it actually changes the expression on their face and their mood for hours afterward!
2. Listen intently when someone speaks to you – Not all people get listened to as much as they deserve, so show them that they matter by really hearing what they have to say. There is no worse feeling than being in conversation with someone and they’re constantly distracted with their phone or something else that is going on. So why do that to somebody else? Be consciously curious.
3. Help those in need – Whether it be giving up your seat on public transportation for an elderly person or spending time with someone who is feeling lonely. Your offer of companionship won’t always be accepted but you’ll be surprised how many people take up your offer.
4. Be patient – have patience with people and give them time to process what you’ve said. They are trying to work out how they feel about your comment or opinion, so let them do just that and be patient, it’ll go better for everyone! You can even do things like let the other car go in front of you on your commute to work or even take a moment to ask how your barista’s day is going.
5. Give a compliment – compliments are one of the fastest ways to make someone’s day better. You know that feeling of excitement and self-confidence that courses through your veins when someone compliments you? Why not pay that feeling forward and show some praise to someone who might need it. Maybe even a total stranger?
6. Be kind to yourself – this is probably the most important. After the past few years, it can feel easy to be hard on ourselves. You might be telling yourself things like “I don’t work out enough” or “I’m not social enough” or “I haven’t quite figured out how to be productive at home”. Take the time to be kind to yourself. Fuel your body with whole foods that nourish. Fuel your mind with positive thoughts that fill you with confidence and happiness. Even if you only have a minute a day, look to find one thing you are grateful for.
Being kind and compassionate with yourself and others can have a positive effect on your mental health. Kindness is an important part of humanity, and it’s worth practising. Jennifer Dukes Lee once said “In a world where you can be anything… be kind.”
Read more about Building a Healthy Body Image One Step at a Time or visit Miracle Mindset Coaching.
