I have been thinking a LOT about this concept of changing the world. I feel like it is very common for people to feel this inner sense of desire to make a difference, to help make the world a better place, to help people, to change the world.
It has often been talked about how to change the world we have to be the change. In the healing community we talk about how we change the world and help the world by healing ourselves. In healing ourselves we recharge our energy which impacts all of the world… but I have not only personally experienced this urge for more, I have witnessed many people who also have this urge. This feeling like we have to do some grandeur gesture - something big or specific like: we have to be a coach, we have to be a teacher, we have to support a social cause, and so on…
I think many times people can often get so lost in trying to help everyone around them, that they forget to help themselves. It goes back to that thought in our healing community that we have to do the inner work, heal our conditioning, our ancestral trauma, change the trajectory of our world, and watch the domino effect unravel.
But like I already said, we sometimes do all of this and still don’t feel like it is enough or feel like we “should” be doing more. And while it’s great and essential and necessary for people to go out and do these big gestures, to be guides, teaches, coaches, fight for social causes, I wonder if in the grand scheme of things the way we SHOW up every single day in all the little actions could in the end make a bigger difference (think compound effect).
This is why no matter what “be the change” always rings the truest for me in all capacities. Be the change by doing the healing work - be an example for others to do the same. Be the change through day to day seemingly insignificant acts of kindness - not niceness - but true kindness. Do you know the difference?
I wonder if we could all see the bigger giant picture that God sees, and we could see HOW incredible impactful our seemingly insignificant daily actions actually become over time when we just show up in life through kindness, and if we all valued the simple gestures more.
How many of us are out there doing some social cause, doing some grand gesture - but then day to day forget about or dismiss the power of the seemingly insignificant actions. When in reality - it is likely these small day to day actions yield exponential results (both for ourselves and others).
What do I mean by this? I mean be kind. Not nice - I do believe there is a difference and I can personally speak from experience. I feel like nice stems from the people pleaser mentality, or the need to be liked or appear like the good girl… I know this because I spent the better part of my life being nice, but was I truly kind?
Kindness comes with a different tone, a different voice, a different look. Kindness has a softness to it, and it just is. Kindness doesn’t come from the need to please or be the good girl/boy. Kindness isn’t so people will like me. Kindness is not about me at all. And in my opinion, true kindness is how we truly change the world. One act of kindness at a time over and over through time.
And kindness comes with so much less pressure, less stress. For me kindness feels easeful. It lacks pressure. To hold this belief that I need to do something to change the world, that I need to give back to my community, that I need to be a role model, that I need to teach, coach, guide, or fight a social cause - this can sometimes come with a load of pressure - feeling like I’m not doing enough, like what I do isn’t good enough, but kindness just is.
How can we be more kind in our lives? I personally think its easy - think of the little ways that people around you have felt really truly kind for you? What did it entail? It’s looking into a strangers eyes, like truly being with them for even a moment - allowing them to feel seen which at our human core we all crave and desire.
Kindness is how we treat someone, especially someone who is maybe more difficult, because we leave the judgment at the door, admitting that we truly don’t know their experience or where they are at, because we would want them to do the exact same for us. (PS - this applies for how we treat ourselves as well, because how we treat ourselves is how we give others permission to treat themselves. Set a boundary might not be nice to some people but we can do it with kindness).
kindness is not taking things personal, because nothing ever really is.
How many times have you had kept a kind thought you had about someone to yourself because of your fear that you would sound funny or strange or be weird? Kindness is complimenting someone when you feel the compliment in your heart - not because you think you should say something nice.
Kindness is smiling a genuine smile when you feel it or having a genuine exchange with someone, being present for even a moment in time, a blink of the eye.
kIndness is asking someone what they need or how you can support them rather than just trying to solve their problems when they didn’t ask. (Including asking ourselves). Kindness is showing up and letting our actions match our words.
Kindness is asking someone how they are - but truly meaning it - not saying it for the sake of filing the empty air. And kindness might mean letting someone know when you can’t hold space for their response but in a loving and compassionate way.
kindness is speaking your truth. It is making amends where amends is needed to be made, it is asking forgiveness and forgiving, because we are all human and we all make mistakes - we all act out through our wounded inner child.
Kindness is seeing everyone as an equal - not putting them down to build yourself up or putting them on a pedestal to beat yourself up… it is seeing that we are all human beings and we are all worthy and we are all just at different parts of our journey and on our own paths.
Kindness is being kind because you genuinely desire it and no ulterior motive, and never because you have to be - but because you genuinely want to be.
Kindness could be being nice, but just being nice isn’t kind.
Kindness can change the world.
In what ways can you practice more kindness in your day to day life? What we do everyday, how we show up all the time over time yields far greater results than how we show up once in a while, for some people.
I don’t know about you - but I know I want to practice being more kind in my life.
Be the Change. Be Kind.
