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The Kindness Box

Geoff-Allen

Geoff-Allen

Resident megalomaniac
From the best brain possible site -

As you probably know — maybe even firsthand, depression is more than just feeling blue or having negative emotions.

That happens to all of us. That’s normal.

Depression is a persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest that negatively affects everything in your life — how you feel, think, and behave. The condition can be accompanied by numerous physiological symptoms, like lack of energy, insomnia, digestive problems, joint pain, migraines, and even cardiovascular issues.

Along with numerous lifestyle changes you can make to help ease depression, research confirms that performing random acts of kindness can aid in recovery. Kindness and empathy help us relate to other people and have more positive relationships with friends, family, and even perfect strangers that we encounter in our daily lives. Besides just improving personal relationships, however, kindness can actually make you healthier and happier.

https://thebestbrainpossible.com/how-random-acts-of-kindness-can-ease-depression/

Enjoy your day!
 
Geoff-Allen

Geoff-Allen

Resident megalomaniac
Practicing compassion & kindness -

What are some specific ways to practice compassion for others?

The scale that measured compassion in the study above includes seven techniques:

Being supportive of others. We can let the people we care about know we're excited when something goes well for them, and that we hurt when they're in pain.

Read the other techniques here -

How Helping Others Can Relieve Anxiety and Depression

:)
 
Geoff-Allen

Geoff-Allen

Resident megalomaniac
Around this time each year, many children have made a Christmas wish list that includes items like toys, games, crafts and electronics. While children may express gratitude and joy in response to receiving gifts, the concept of generosity of spirit has certainly changed over the years.

It was St. Nicholas’s legendary status of generosity that gave rise to the modern-day tradition of Santa Claus. As the story goes, as a young boy, St. Nicholas was left with a substantial amount of inheritance when his parents died. He used this to help others, primarily the poor.

St. Nicholas was generous. Generosity is defined as the quality of being kind and giving time, attention or gifts to others without conditions or the expectation of getting something in return. Being generous is seen as a positive virtue in people and has links with other emotions such as empathy and compassion.

Read more -

5 ways to infuse your family with the spirit of generosity this Christmas.

Hope that long URL works - let me know ...

:)
 
Geoff-Allen

Geoff-Allen

Resident megalomaniac
Enrich your life and that of others by practicing generosity

The most valuable lesson in generosity came to me from Buddhist teacher Sharon Salzberg at a retreat many years ago. She said that we often have an initial impulse to be generous, only to talk ourselves out of it. We do this whether that initial impulse is to give something away or whether it’s to contact a friend in need.

Comes from this psych blog -

20 Quotations on Generosity: A Profound Act of Kindness

Also a few quotes that just maybe aren't in this thread so far - I didn't feel like checking 1900 posts! :)
 
Geoff-Allen

Geoff-Allen

Resident megalomaniac
When we think about generosity, most of us probably don’t think immediately of a powerful force, an inner resource, a real tool for changing how we relate to ourselves , to others and to our world.

Instead, we may think of it similarly to how we think of kindness or compassion — qualities that are gentle, tender, potentially self-effacing — and, as a big misconception, more aligned with weakness than strength. Largely this is because, culturally, we think of generosity purely in terms of the act of giving something up for someone else. This dynamic, by definition, implies at least some degree of self-sacrifice.

Generosity is more than just “giving up.” Generosity generates its power from the gesture of letting go. Being able to give to others shows us our ability to let go of attachments that otherwise can limit our beliefs and our experiences. It might be in our nature to think, “That object is mine for X, Y or Z reason.” But that thought can simply dissolve. This doesn’t just happen passively; we choose to let it through the cultivation of generosity. It is in that choice to dissolve that we carry ourselves to a state of greater freedom.

The Real Power of Generosity

:)
 
Geoff-Allen

Geoff-Allen

Resident megalomaniac
Kindness means a behavioral response of compassion and actions that are selfless; or a mindset that places compassion for others before one’s own interests. In performing the selfless act, a person may undercut their own selfish interests.

Kindness is a value that is often disregarded. Why is kindness so undervalued? In part, it’s because kind people may be viewed as “enablers” by some, or worse, as “suckers” by the cynical. Thus, the cynic’s view that one is a “sucker,” if one behaves in a kind manner toward others, reflects a belief system that success is only achieved through stepping on or ignoring others. Yet, the cynic’s behavior rarely results in true happiness—that sense of feeling loved, that one’s true destiny and purpose are fulfilled, and that what one is doing matters in the most profound sense.

Comes from the emotional nourishment blog -

Why Random Acts of Kindness Matter to Your Well-being

Enjoy your day!
 
Geoff-Allen

Geoff-Allen

Resident megalomaniac
Entertaining video about kindfulness -


If you want more -

Try searching YouTube for happiness and its causes - there's a LOT to choose from. And the happier you are the more likely you will be to treat others with kindness & compassion.

Cheers!
 
F

FineLinen

Well-Known Member
"More than machinery, we need humanity. More than cleverness, we need kindness and gentleness. -- Charlie Chaplin

"Teaching a child not to step on a caterpillar is as valuable to the child as it is to the caterpillar. Teach a child compassion and it will stay with them their whole life through" - Bradley Miller

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Geoff-Allen

Geoff-Allen

Resident megalomaniac
Being involved in philanthropic activities at a young age can pay dividends in personal growth, social responsibility and well‑being throughout life, points out Tara Jones, chief revenue officer for Girl Scouts of Western Washington. “Former Girl Scouts are more active in community service and volunteer work than non-Girl Scouts,” she notes. But don’t worry if you missed out on the merit badges. Studies show volunteering at an older age has a significant positive effect on self-worth and purpose, which can help prolong a happier, healthier life.

Comes from this site -

Unlocking the Hidden Benefits of Helping Others

Enjoy your day!
 
Geoff-Allen

Geoff-Allen

Resident megalomaniac
Make the world a better place -

"Doing well by doing good," is one of those catchphrases we've all heard about 1,000 times too often. But it's true that helping the community around you (or even far away) brings real benefits to your business that go way beyond the PR boost it can provide.

To learn more about why and how to be of service to the planet, I talked with Katherine Austin, owner of Karma Yoga in the Detroit suburbs. For the last several years, her business has supported a number of community efforts, including Habitat for Humanity, Freedom House, which assists political refugees, many of them from Africa, to relocate in the United States, and Urban Farming, which turns abandoned lots into vegetable gardens and teaches inner city residents how to grow their own food.

Read the full-article -

https://www.inc.com/minda-zetlin/9-ways-to-make-the-world-a-better-place-in-2014.html

All the best!
 
Geoff-Allen

Geoff-Allen

Resident megalomaniac
Having a kind heart makes your life beautiful, peaceful, and fulfilling. When you possess a kind heart, you ought to behave responsibly and appropriately. Your kind heart allows you to pursue righteousness and kindness that in turn brings righteousness, and honor to your life. As Kindness changes everything, you will find your life also changes in a positive way.

Comes from this site -

Have A Kind Heart As Kindness Changes Everything

Cheers!
 
Geoff-Allen

Geoff-Allen

Resident megalomaniac
We all know about the travesties and tragedies of the present day: every day, the amount of negative news we have the chance to digest can be completely overwhelming. While we can sign Avaaz petitions and go to screenings and donate money, sometimes it is worthwhile to remember that we can make and direct visible changes within our own communities. Don’t neglect the local just because the global is more attention-grabbing.

25 Things We Can Do to Make The World a Better Place

All the best!
 
F

FineLinen

Well-Known Member
"Beginning today, treat everyone you meet as if they were going to be dead by midnight. Extend to them all the care, kindness and understanding you can muster, and do it with no thought of any reward. Your life will never be the same again." -Og Mandino-
 
Geoff-Allen

Geoff-Allen

Resident megalomaniac
We can serve others in seemingly small ways that might make a huge impact.

The key to teaching your children to serve is to simply do it all the time.

Kids learn best through repetition and routine. So make serving others such an integral part of your family dynamic that it becomes a habit.

39 Ways to Serve with Your Kids - Part Three

Cheers!
 
Geoff-Allen

Geoff-Allen

Resident megalomaniac
Ever since I was a young kid, I have always enjoyed volunteering. I was Key Club Vice President in high school and I was always coming up with grand ideas to raise money, bring awareness to an issue or just be an active voice in the community. Whether it was serving meals to the homeless, spending time in nursing homes, tutoring kids, or even volunteering abroad I have been drawn to giving my time, money and skill to others; however its not all exactly a selfless act. Over the years, I have realized that I receive a lot of personal gain from volunteering. I have strengthened ties within my community, learned gratitude, kindness and patience, made new friends, learned how other people live, experienced the time and patience it takes to run fundraisers, gained new insights on other cultures and ways of life, learned about humility and kindness, dealt with the demanding and unfair politics that come with large NGOs and have learned to be a better leader and role model. Yes, of course my heart becomes more full every time I give back to someone who is less fortunate but I feel that I gain more in return. Whether they are less fortunate in their health, financial status, social status, educational status or simply have been born into a war-ridden country; I have learned some of the most important lessons in life from the “less fortunate”. Oddly enough, many of these individuals have more wisdom, generosity and kindness than those who we consider to be “more fortunate”.

Volunteering: The Most Humbling Selfish Act of Kindness

Plus the rest of that blog!

All the best!
 
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