fabiochiu/medium-articles huggingface dataset:
Our very own Amal appa’s Totkay
By: Zainab Shahid
Tags: Amal Totkay, Kindness, Joyful, Amal Fellowship, Amal Academy

Amal appa is not a person, but I fell in love with it, don’t worry, it’s not an animal either. It’s a fellowship where you explore the junk in you and by jugaard, or you can say, by thinking out of the box. You make yourself better. Why am I calling it appa? Because it really takes you under its wing.

I have learned some amazing Totkay to stand still in the storm of the reality of this world. Let’s have short reflection on those Amal Totkay. They are only five but they have the meaning of life.

1)Self talk. 2) Get out of you comfort zone. 3) Create new habits. 4) Ask people help. 5) Fake it till you make it.

If we try to understand these five points, the understanding of ourselves would be easy. Let me explain these to you

Self talk: We all do that don’t be shy to admit it, its a fact guys. However, how many of us do positive self talk? I think very few. Now here comes the totka do positive self talk be your own motivator. Back Pat yourself you can do it.

Get out of you comfort zone: Put yourself in the situation where you will have no other option but rising up. Here I would like to share an example of Neville from Harry potter and the deathly hollows, where everyone thought harry was dead, Neville got out of his comfort zone and tell everyone who is the boss.

Create new habits: This will help you to learn new things and you will be able to explore yourself.

Ask people help: Choose the people you trust and get the feedback on your work and ask them to help. It is hard but worth millions.

Fake it till you make it: This one is Favorite and, it requires acting pretend that you know how to solve the task you will find an answer eventually. If can not do any thing just keep doing the acting of eventually you will be good at the task. For me it’s simply mean don’t give up.

I have started to implement the second, third and, the last one in my life and by creating new habits I realize, I can write. Try today and see what do you know about yourself.

Goodbye until next time :)
If Kindness Is Free, Why Do We Struggle to Be More Than ‘nice’?
By: Sophie F.
Tags: Self Improvement, Kindness, Humanity, Life Lessons, Do Good

Don’t Be the Nice Guy

Being ‘nice’ is acting out of self-interest. If you are just being ‘nice’, you are performing in a way to please someone else, in order to help you get what you want. You may not fully agree with this yet, but hear me out.

This may well be done subconsciously. You might think you’re doing it to help, but if you think about it more, it might not be totally based in altruism.

One can also be ‘nice’ for less-than-admirable reasons very consciously, although for the purpose of this article, I’m hoping that we’ve grown beyond that…

We all have a little voice inside our heads, call it intuition, or the angel and the devil, that knows how our future decisions would affect others. You can feel it in your gut.

Being ‘kind’ happens when you follow what your intuition tells you about what is right. Some call it listening to your higher-self. Whatever works for you.

This comes from a place where you see how your choices would affect the other people involved, regardless of how it might support your own motivations.

In some situations, there is no definitive right and wrong, the choice is neutral. However, there are certainly times when you know for sure which path is the real yellow brick road.

In summary: Being nice is interaction motivated by success in one’s own intentions.
You
Tags: Thoughts, Kindness

I know what my thoughts mean to me, but what do your thoughts mean to you, please tell me?
My First Blog
Tags: Youngadult, Connect, Kindness, Learn, Life

Here lies a blank screen in front of me ready to be filled with everything I have learnt up until this point in life.

Coming from someone who has a difficult time expressing their emotions and communicating their feelings — which I’m sure there are many of us. I feel safe here. No one to judge — not that you should care, but in reality it’ll always be at the back of your head. But it’s alright, I’m a work in progress.

Not sure, how many people will see this, but if you’ve found this site from tiktok where I have emerged from, we now have a few things in common for sure — emotionally distant, a severe addiction to tiktok and a desire to become the best version of ourselves.

I hope I can share my experiences and learn from others — stay in tune to learn, grow and make some amazing connections from people all around the world.
[Serial MicroBlog] “When Emotions Collide”: Season Pilot — “The Ex-ex-ex Returns!”
Tags: Relationships, Kindness, Ex Girlfriend, Lost Love, Life

The faint lights from my living room provided just enough backlighting for me to see the person on my porch — but as a phantom more than a real person.

Oh my God! It was an ex-ex-ex-girlfriend whom I hadn’t seen or heard from in many years.

Quickly, I shuffled to my front door, opened it, reached in, and switched on my porch light.

And what I saw made my jaw drop.

(^Image by Pexel)

This once beautiful Asian sweetheart now looked like a forlorn homeless person.

Gone was the luxurious brown, butt-length hair, manicured nails, and subdued make-up that used to frame her angelic face.

Her face, arms, and hands were sun burnt, almost black; not the luscious mocha color I remembered.

Her hair was barely collar-length. Much later I learned that she had sold her hair to local wig makers.

She had sunken eyes and was rail thin.

Her once stunning figure now resembled a boy more than a woman.

Dirty and disheveled, she was wearing an old, filthy T-shirt that was torn in many places.

Her jeans looked four sizes too large and were rolled up to calf length.

Flip-flops that were held together with masking tape looked painfully small for her scarred, muddy feet.

I slowly walked toward her and put out my hand.

(Image by Pexel)

She sprinted the last four steps between us, grabbed my hand, pulled me closer, and tightly wrapped her arms around me as if she thought I would soon vaporize and disappear — like the rest of her hallucinations…

By JaiChai

[Image by Author]

This is YOUR TORUM INVITATION!

[Image by Author]

Excerpted from: Suckers and Samaritans. Same Thing? — JaiChai 2017. Revised 12–21–2020. All rights reserved.
To Not Get Together with Family This Year is Good
By: Mj Blehart
Tags: Kindness, Covid 19, Mindfulness, Life Lessons, Family

This is an ugly truth. But, as a result of people choosing to get together at Thanksgiving, the numbers of COVID-19 cases and deaths have been ramping up.

This week ends with Christmas, which for many people represents the biggest of family gatherings. However, the pandemic is NOT over. Yes, there is a vaccine — but it’s important to recognize a vaccine is NOT a cure.

Vaccination is going to take time. What’s more, social-distancing and mask-wearing practices need to continue. There is NO quick fix to this situation. What’s more, the failure to take adequate precautions over the last 9 months is why it’s not improving. But what-iffing the past doesn’t take us anywhere useful now.

The point here is that as much as not getting together with family sucks, we need to view it as a matter of positivity. It’s a good thing. Why? So that we can get together next year.

I suspect a lot of families that just HAD to get together at Thanksgiving will regret it. Why? Because of loved ones that needlessly were lost because of it.

See, that’s the most infuriating thing about this pandemic. This death toll should never have been what it is. Due to selfishness, ludicrous politics, and uncaring, unkind people, here we are. Again, we can’t unring this bell.

What we can do is choose wisely NOW to impact the future.
Letter to Self
Tags: Self Improvement, Kindness, Goals, Self Love, Meditation

Dear [insert your name here],

You are enough.

I see you.

All of your beauty,

all of your imperfections.

I tend to call them “flaws.”

I’m sorry for picking on you.

I’m sorry for focusing on “what’s wrong” with you,

instead of thanking you for taking care of me.

Thank you

for giving me this body

to live life,

to experience joy,

pain,

pleasure,

sadness,

excitement,

love.

I’m sorry for the mean things

I have said to you.

I’m sorry for degrading you,

treating you as if you’re not enough

because you don’t look like the models

on the magazine covers.

Because you haven’t achieved

your desired level of success.

You are amazing.

You are worth more

than words can express.

I’m sorry for smoking,

eating too much sugar,

processed junk-food,

not giving you enough water,

and then judging you for gaining a few pounds.

I’m sorry for thinking that you’re not enough.

Not smart enough,

not pretty enough,

not driven enough,

not good enough.

I’m sorry that I am so hard on you.

Thank you for caring for me

and being there for me.

You accept me without judgment.

You love me as I am,

and continue to support me.

You nourish me,

give me life.

Let me run,

jump,

dance,

drive,

work,

eat,

sleep.

All of this I take for granted.

I want you to know how much I love you.

You are important to me.

I’m sorry I haven’t shown you

how much I care.

I expect so much of you,

criticize you for aging

when wrinkles appear,

instead of celebrating

that you’ve allowed me to

live as many years that I have.

You are a miracle.

You are love.

Thank you for showing me how to be better.

Thank you for my life.

I see you.

With gratitude,

[Sign your name]

Namaste
Ideas of the “perfect image” on Social Media
By: Emma Corona
Tags: Instagram, Personality, Social Media, Kindness

I’ve been thinking about the idea of having a perfect image on social media, and the whole idea of it is crazy. Everyone has those days where they feel like they are not doing to well or not feeling in the best mood, and they hide that from everyone because they want to put out the image that they are “perfect”, but when in reality everyone has their own inperfections that makes them unique. Everyone has their own version of perfection. On persons version of perfect might be traveling in a van while another might be going out to parties. Everyone is perfect in their own way, shape, and form. Everyone has different thoughts and ideas about what you should get out of life and no one should feel like they can not post that on social media. Everyone is afaird to post their true personality, becuase they are scared someone is going to judge them for being themselves. (which should not happen in the first place) Everyone should be allowed to post whatever they want and not get scrutinized for it. Everyone has a different personality, and when on social media people should embrace it instead of trying to block it out.
The Secret of the Universe
By: Mak The Messenger
Tags: Motivation, Kindness, Advice, Life, Thinking

Nikola Tesla professed, “If you want to find the secrets of the universe, think in terms of energy, frequency, and vibration.”

Okay, now do me a favor- put your hand on top of your throat and say the line below out loud:

“I am safe, I am loved, I am enough”

Did you feel that? The vibration you just emitted by speaking those affirmations. How did it feel to speak positive energy over yourself? That’s you operating at a high frequency.

The universe cannot distinguish when we are being sarcastic, nor can it tell when we are jokingly self-deprecating. When we speak, we send out a vibration into the universe that automatically begins making its way back to us. Everything we announce is taken as truth and the universe works in such a way that gives us exactly what we ask for.

Instead of saying “I’m so fat”, change that to, “I love my body and I am grateful for its ability to transform”. Try not to cuss out the person that cuts you off in traffic and say, “I don’t know why they are driving that way, may everything be okay, and may they make it to their destination safely”. Rather than proclaiming, “I’m sorry”, try saying, “Thank you for highlighting an area in which I have room to grow, I apologize for…” Be intentional and pensive concerning the words you speak. Your words are magic, and you are casting spells as soon as your mouth opens and your tongue begins moving.

What have you cultivated today with the conjuring of your words? You are a creator, you hold the key to access any frequency you desire to operate on. As you go through the remainder of your day try to be more cognizant of what you say: filter your thoughts, affirm yourself- compliment a stranger. Send out as much good energy that you can.
That was unfortunate, Rhonda Skinner.
By: Lanu Pitan
Tags: Spirituality, Kindness

That was unfortunate, Rhonda Skinner. Some actually feel, unworthy begging, that is if they are not pretending. Nevertheless, we learn every day, and experience is the best teacher. Thank you for reading.
Ah yes, how I loved poring over the sears catalogs.
Tags: Kindness, Seniors, Aging Well, Holidays, Marriage

I also delighted in the sugar-filled foods, the colorful Sears Christmas Wish Book with its wish-inspiring treats. The dolls, and hats and mittens and farm sets.

Ah yes, how I loved poring over the sears catalogs. My family was on the immigrant-y side, so the catalog was like taking sneak-peek at what all those mysteriously confident Americans were up to. Christmas, birthdays, all holidays get more bittersweet as we get older. The virus amplfies it all the more.
5 Acts of Kindness
By: Muhammad Bilal
Tags: Amal Academy, 5 Acts Of Kindness, Amalkindness, Kindness

Kindness is that thing which is the biggest quality of mankind and which give it superiority over all other creations. Compassion is synonym of Kindness. Kindness could be anything which you do with others, it could be a small act of happiness or work you do for your parents, siblings, colleagues or with any other creation.

“Constant kindness can accomplish much, as the sun makes ice melt. Kindness causes misunderstanding, mistrust and hostility to evaporate” — Albert Schweitzer

Let’s start the 5 acts of kindness.

I’ve done small act of kindness with my mother which really please me and my mother too.

At morning I presented fruits (Apple, Dates, Pomegranate and Orange) to my mother.

Morning Diet

2. Then After breakfast I gave Sweets to my mother.

Sweet for fun

3. Then I helped my mother to cook macaroni. It was quite delicious and spicy.

Italian Food

4. Then I went to the market and bought one of our city specialist ‘Sohan Halwa’. It’s a special sweet in our city made with walnuts, almonds, jaggery, flour etc.

Akhrooti Sohan Halwa

5. Then at night I bought one of my favorite pizza for my mother.

Chicken Fajita with extra cheese

“Kindness is choosing to acknowledge and celebrate the beauty in others, regardless of whether or not they can find it in themselves.” — RAKtivist

All these small act of kindness really please me and my mother too. Love with mother is one of the strongest bond in this whole world.

Do it for others and please yourself.

#5ActsOfKindness #AmalAcademy # AmalKindness
Best Way to Spread Holiday Cheer
Tags: Positivity, Kindness, Encouragement, Holidays, 2020

The holidays are regularly the time we think about giving, helping people out, and spreading the holiday cheer. With all the chaos of 2020 and everything that has happened, I decided to take a little different approach.

Over the past few days, I’ve taken a few minutes each morning to compose a text to someone and let them know what they mean to me. I want them to know they matter and the impact they’ve had on my life. I want to speak truth into their life and let them know what I hope for them in 2021.

I have to tell you, it’s been fun. It really has. Sure, I hope they enjoy it and find value in it, but more than anything, it’s been great for me. I look forward to my alarm going off in the morning and reminding me it’s time to tell someone how great they are.

I don’t post this to toot my own horn or say “look at what I’m doing.” It’s more to say, “What would it look like if we all did something like this?” What would it look like if, over the next couple of weeks, we took a few minutes out of the day and let someone know we love them, or that they encourage/inspire us, or how they’ve made an impact on our lives? What if we told colleagues or bosses we appreciate the hard work they’ve shown or maybe tell that person who you know needs a lift that you’re thinking about them?

Drew Dudley said:

“We’ve made leadership about changing the world, and there is no world. There’s only six billion understandings of it, and if you change one person’s understanding of it, one person’s understanding of what they’re capable of, one person’s understanding of how much people care about them, one person’s understanding of how powerful an agent of change they can be in this world, you’ve changed the whole thing.”

You don’t have to set a goal to change the whole world, but you can set a goal to change one person’s world.

Let’s be kind to one another. Let’s encourage people to see and be the best version of themselves. Let’s provide hope to one another. Let’s get out there and love people.

If they say hurt people hurt people then couldn’t the opposite be true as well? Can loved people love people?
A Gift Overdue
By: Ahmad Faraz
Tags: Kindness, Happiness, Thankfulness, Gratitude, Blessings

Shower of Gratitude

Gratitude practice is systematically paying attention to what is going right in one’s life, to see the contributions that others make in these good things, and then expressing gratitude verbally and behaviorally

You can increase your feelings of gratitude by expressing the gratefulness you have. One study conducted by a group that aims to find the “science of happiness” (Soul Pancake) showed that writing a letter to a person that participants were grateful for increased individuals’ happiness by 2–4%. Interestingly, however, when these same people expressed their gratitude directly by making a phone call to the person who they were thankful for, happiness increased from 4–19%! Furthermore, expressing gratitude can make someone else’s day better too!

Keeping this idea in view I write a letter to a friend who had helped me in past. That was a unique thing for me since the incident was about three years ago and writing about it now feels like yesterday’s incident. I feel really grateful about it since it helped me a lot in the past and present. It makes me happy and eager to help others, It makes me realize we can help anybody by just talk to them.
Harshness — Truth Spoken Without Love
By: Flex Mauto
Tags: Feedback, Students, Kindness, Teachers, Schools

As a teenager, I found myself at the sharp end of some harsh criticism. I was in Science class when the Teacher asked a simple question, at least that’s what I thought.

He asked the names of common chemicals, easy I thought, ‘Fairy liquid’ was my response.

The Teacher was not amused; he had expected answers like sodium chloride, hydrogen peroxide, etc.

So he proceeded to denigrate me in front of the whole class, to a cacophony of laughter. It has taken me years to get over this humiliation — and even more years to have the courage to ask or answer questions in public.

“Truth spoken without love is harshness; it offers information in such a way that we cannot hear it.”

Truth & Love belong together like Ant & Dec, fish & chips, bread & butter, salt & pepper, etc.
Fixing stuff around yourself
By: Ahmad Faraz
Tags: Leadership, Kindness, Fix, Responsibility, Generousity

Little Act of Leadership

No matter how much time you spend performing routine maintenance to keep everything in tip-top condition, you’ll still be blindsided by unexpected breakdowns. But you can eliminate problems before they arise, saving yourself a lot of time .

​One of the coolest things about being an adult is autonomy. You can, more or less, do whatever you want. And while home maintenance might not be something that you “want” to do, but like maintaining all the stuff around. it’s definitely something you “should” do if you consider yourself a smart person who has your life together.

There is a lot of stuff we ignore in our day to day surroundings and do not take any kind of responsibility to fix things up. This is a similar condition to mine before this activity. But the reality is that no one cares about cleanliness either it home, road and office, just look at my room. This is my mini-library that is in a terrible situation with all things bolstered in one place.

I felt very responsible and satisfied after cleaning and fixing my Library because humans feel fresh when they have a clean and tidy mind and environment.

I think this is a small act of leadership without any influence, I did this on my account, no one drove me to do this stuff so, and not only this but I also try to complete every task in other daily life activities with responsibility. We should take power in our days because fixing all these small things around us and resolving these little puzzles can be much helpful for us in the future when we will have to take authorization and accountability for all the resolving major life problems.

And Hope so, I will continue this work even without asked or assigned by someone because fixing this small stuff will help us in the future.
Kindness in Leadership. How kindness is a core value
By: Aamir Khan Maarofi
Tags: Leadership, Kindness, Kindness Matters, Doing What Matters, Embrace Change

Picture by Amine Hoov at Unsplash

Living in a competitive world, having access to the internet — with virtually unlimited connective potential, scrolling Facebook, Insta, and Twitters’ neverending feeds, almost every idea and piece of knowledge is accessible in a matter of seconds. Which has made us believe that the world already has everything for us, and we complain if we do not immediately get it. On the other hand, we want to live a “Life of Purpose” and “Make an Impact” but are not willing to put in “hard work”, and think of leadership as “Something very big”.

Both of these extremes have developed a new “Mindset” — where most of us are in continuous ambiguity and confusion. Making an impact is amazing and is worth enough but because we are so focused on making a bigger impact, we do not realize the significance of small acts that we do every day. These small acts spread the lesson of kindness and compassion, and hold an impact within itself. I recently discovered, that those small acts of kindness shape our personality and lead us towards a better version of ourselves. As Morgan Freeman says:

How do we change the world? By one act of kindness at a time

But how should one start doing so?? Where to begin?? To understand this, here is a little story of “Fixing My Sisters’ Sewing Machine”.

I was setting in my parents' room, watching this course on “Amal Teachable” where I had to carry out an activity of “Fixing stuff around yourself”. I was looking around for something to fix and suddenly noticed the “Sewing machine” which was out of order.

Broken Machine — Needed to be fixed

It was a manual hand-operated machine which was difficult for my sister to operate, I disassembled the manual handle, utilized a spare electric motor by assembling its parts, and installed it to operate the machine on electricity.

Modified One — With electric motor installed

At first, I was not sure if I could do it but after fixing it, I felt satisfaction watching my sister comfortably using it. I would have done it by a mechanic some other day but this activity encouraged me to do it immediately myself. Just like this, I’ve started taking initiatives for other household and personal tasks and have noticed this complete mind-shift from procrastination to be doing things.

I see such problems as opportunities to take responsibility, by creating comfort for others, and to show kindness. It’s different and is satisfactory. I see myself growing from deep inside me and hopefully will keep this habit of continuous improvement.

If you feel that you can do such small acts of kindness that bears covertly noticeable significance, do it now. Do not wait for later, you may miss on this impulse of doing something.
Creativity.
By: Pooja Hariharan
Tags: Kindness, Creativity, Poetry, Poetry On Medium, Care

A photo by @korpa from Unsplash!

What is creativity anyway?

A skill? A talent?

The nagging sense of need, desperation sounds more like it.

A need to make your voice heard,

To do something about things that matter to you.

Wouldn’t you say, you will do anything for a loved one at their time of need? Anything to make them smile?

Anything to make them happy? even if it is for a short while?

Creativity too, much like the act of care,

takes the help of the mind to care for matters close to heart.

Creativity is just like the reassurance someone gives you -

Seeing what you already saw, knowing what you already know,

but in a way that makes sense to you only now.

Creativity at its best is the deepest expression of care.

That’s my view anyway,

What do you think?
How to Do a Whole Lot of Good in Under a Minute
By: Amy Shearn
Tags: Self Improvement, Kindness, Generosity, Self, Acts Of Kindness

How to Do a Whole Lot of Good in Under a Minute

Photo: Johner Images/Getty Images

’Tis the season for Good Works, and volunteering at soup kitchens and delivering cookies to neighbors and all matter of other things that don’t really work as well in Pandemic Times. But altruistic activities are still important — apart from the obvious reasons, studies have found that acts of kindness make you feel much better about, you know, everything. And if you only have a minute to spare, well, that’s okay too. You can still:
How a little act of responsibility is Leadership?
By: Ali Hasan
Tags: Leadership, Kindness, Amal Fellowship, Responsibility, Amal Academy

Meaning of leadership is never to lead a team of 50 people or an organization but a little change in the life that motivates you. Urgh, But how?

Yes, a little change in your life is leadership. Taking the responsibility even if you are not in that position but, taking the first step is leadership.

Every one of us are doing, or you can say playing the role of leader in other’s lives and your own life without even knowing. It starts with your self, how you achieve it, how you tackle the challenges and takes responsibility of your acts.

A little piece of advice, a little help to complete the task, a little motivation, a slightest urge to do favour even to yourself is leadership. I would suggest you to watch the TED talk of Jeff Bezos, in which he inspires us, gives the true meaning of leadership. Do not wait to become a hero but start with the little.

I’m doing my Amal career fellowship, and they have developed an informative course on the aspects of leadership. I was assigned a task to start with a little. So, I started it with my room.

It was very cold, so I was taking the lectures on my bed under the warm blanket and was thinking from where should I start? And I looked at the side table of my bed, and it was messy. I’m not a disordered person but, a lazy one.

I was planning to clean but couldn’t do this but thanks to the Amal team for assigning. I put back all the books back into the bookshelf except the one, I have started reading recently. And then I placed the other items back to their original position like shoe shiner, wristwatch, comb, snacks, handsfree, and the mobile charger etc. Ahh, it is easy now for all of you to recognize the items in the above picture.

Now, It is just a lamp, a book, and the perfume which I use as a room freshener on the table.

And I don’t know why, but I am very excited right now and feeling very satisfied. Now my next target is the drawer of this table, and it is a little messy too.

So, to conclude the whole story in one sentence, I would say do not wait for the opportunity, start and take the responsibility. It starts only with a little.

Feel free to share your views on the true meaning of leadership.
Mercy Medicine
By: Ani Vidrine
Tags: Compassion, Advent, Hope, Kindness, Mercy

Mercy Medicine

photo by Kira auf der Heide on Unsplash.com

Love, make us models of mercy!

Dear One,

I am writing to remind you of things you already know. Mercy is the antidote to the relentless badgering of the inner critic. When you notice that the voice in your head is spinning a commentary about how worthless you are or about the unskillful behavior of others, it is time to invoke the Merciful One inside of you to spread the balm of wisdom and compassion.

Self-criticism and condemnation of others is the way that you try to exact justice when you feel guilty or conversely, self-righteous. Justice is not yours to serve, however, because you do not know the whole story — about others or about yourself. The blind spots of your subconscious beliefs and pain obscure the truth.

Today is the occasion to offer the medicine of mercy to yourself. As you practice self-mercy, you will naturally offer this gift to others. In mercy, there is hope.

Remember, this moment is an opportunity to connect to Love, and therefore, to live into the fullness of who you are.

As always, do what best awakens you to love,

Your Inner Wisdom
World peace starts within.
By: Kathy Gerstorff
Tags: Claps On Medium, Kindness, Writer, Personal Development, Peace

I can't do world peace but hoping this comment will help :) Thanks for sharing the Hauser video.

I can't do world peace but hoping this comment will help :) Thanks for sharing the Hauser video.
Light
Tags: Light, Kindness

I am a spiritual being, I am defined by my quest for kindess and positivity.
Peace
Tags: Peace, Kindness

I am a spiritual being, I am defined by my quest for kindess and positivity.
Real Life: Editing My Online Time
By: Dana Leigh Lyons
Tags: Simplicity, Kindness, Minimalism, Sobriety, Meditation

Writing, yoga, meditation, self care, soul care, morning routine, evening routine, link love.

How is it that the weeks pass so quickly! I truthfully will never understand “boredom.” Life is so, so full. Of options…of possibilities…of places of exploration and practice.

I’ve been immersed in writing each morning but didn’t get around to extracting an excerpt for the blog this week. Overall, I’ve been feeling pulled to spend less and less time online…and more and more time doing the work. Online time, I find, tends to be a distraction…and tends to leave me feeling increasingly dissatisfied and empty.

There are exceptions, of course. For instance, I’m loving the live meditations and dharma talks each morning here. I tune in at 7am for Gil’s guidance and teaching…and then revisit the recording each evening after dinner. No matter what happens during the day, these are beautiful bookends. And although I’ve got quite a lot on my plate at the moment, I’m seriously considering Gil’s year-long Buddhist Chaplaincy training for the future.

What’s filling your days and calling to your body-mind-soul? We get this one chance, after all, in this particular form. Let’s cherish and celebrate it. Let’s cherish and celebrate each other. And always, always, let’s lead with love.

LingDao “shares” my #WFH situation

Links

Our shared unsharing. “In early quarantine, stripped of our typical distractions, bored by our lockdowns but unable to stop the game of self-comparison, we began to scrutinize one another for sport.” Sigh…

The Year of Drinking Dangerously. “A growing number of women are boozing more than ever during COVID — but what we’re seeking in alcohol may never be found at the bottom of a glass.”

Decadence + deliciousness. Post cancer, Caroline explores her own choices…and how to nourish her children’s relationship with food, connection, celebration and joy.

Power + grace. Lalah Delia offers sage guidance for expressing the highest, truest, most complete version of ourselves.

Wishing you an abundance of grace, hope and kindness this week. Let’s take care of each other. xo.
Mama, I am Pressing the “Glad Button”
By: Victoria Ichizli-Bartels
Tags: Love, Kindness, Honesty, Self-awareness, Parenting

I don’t remember what we argued about, and I am not sure we did. I remember that after picking her up from school in the afternoon, she did or said something that upset me deeply. Emotions were boiling, so I told her about my upset.

Emma came to me and hugged me tightly around my waist and said, “I’m sorry, Mama.”

Here sincere apologies usually helped to resolve the conflict when we had one. But on that day, I had difficulty to resolve the emotions inside. I realized that I seemed not to believe that she was sorry.

Fortunately, a part of me managed to see the situation honestly and non-judgmentally. I could see that my momentary inability to believe her didn’t mean that she wasn’t honest about her regret of upsetting me.

So I returned her hug and said, “Honey, I have difficulty to get over it. I don’t know which buttons you pushed that got me so hurt. Give me please a couple of minutes to process it.”

She nodded and went to play. We seemed to get along well for the rest of the day.

When I asked her to come and let me brush her teeth in the evening, she came immediately without multiple invitations, as she often did before. As she made herself comfortable on my bed and I sat at her side to brush her teeth, she smiled and said, “Mama, I am now pressing the ‘Glad Button.’” Then she formed a heart sign with her hands.

It took me a second to realize that she referred to our argument earlier that day and what I said to her when I opened about my feelings. As I focused back on her sweet face, I saw that her smile widened into a big happy grin.

I felt a smile spreading over my face and happy tears filling my eyes. I let her know that the pressing of the “Glad Button” worked and hugged her tightly. I also said that I loved her.

The subsequent brushing of her teeth was one of the coziest we ever had.
My pleasure.
By: John Edward Marks, Jem
Tags: Thanks, Kindness

I will try to express myself in some mode of life or art as freely as I can and as wholly as I can, using for my defense only — silence, exile, and cunning.
Turning Enemies Into Friends
By: Floyd Mori
Tags: Love, People, Kindness, Friendship, Friends

Turning Enemies Into Friends

Photo by Ben White on Unsplash

Friends are much better to have than enemies

Everyone likes having friends who can be trusted and respected. Friends are people who are compatible and enjoy each other’s company. They are people who care about each other. No one likes having enemies. Sometimes enemies just seem to come out of nowhere. It happens a lot when politics are involved. The easiest way to deal with enemies is usually to avoid them, if at all possible. Staying out of their way and not interacting with them can bring some peace.

We have all heard the admonition from the Bible to “love your enemies” and to “do good to those who hate you.” We may think that is impossible and too difficult, so we may not try to turn enemies into friends. If enemies do become friends, they can become close friends.

Life is more pleasant without enemies.

If we find that we have an enemy, it is a good thing to talk to the person if we want to try to patch things up. If having enemies is not something you want to do, discuss any problems with the person. Find out what is bothering them that makes them an enemy. Try to work out the concerns that stand in the way of friendship.

Forgive and forget is not always easy, but that is something that would be necessary in order to stop being enemies.

Serving others is a way to become friends.

Find out if there is something you could do for the person.

You can do a kind deed unexpectedly or even anonymously. Offer assistance if there is something you can do for the person.

Kindness can work wonders.

It is easy to speak unkindly about others who may be enemies.

Refrain from the urge to spread gossip about the person.

If you show them some respect, it may turn around so they no longer have bad feelings toward you.

They may get to know your good qualities and realize that they don’t want to be enemies with you. Kindness can work wonders.

Politics brings out a lot of hate for people.

Too many people “hate” those who do not agree with them politically.

They feel that it is fine to dislike and disrespect elected officials.

That is unfair and unwise.

These people do not have to be enemies.

They are serving the public. They should not be considered as enemies.

Everyone wants to be happy and well liked.

Get to know the person and see what you have in common.

Everyone has similar goals and ambitions. Everyone wants to be happy and well liked. Sometimes not knowing a person can bring ill feelings which make them into enemies. You can discover their outstanding qualities.

“To Know You Is To Love You” was a popular song Perry Como recorded in 1952.

The words are applicable to life.

It is much more pleasant to have friends than enemies.

Getting to know people can turn enemies into friends.

[Source: Wikipedia]
It’s the little things that count
By: Christopher Boardman
Tags: Kindness, Hope, Creative Process

How would you feel if someone from your distant past appeared out of nowhere to express how your presence had affected them?

It only takes a minute to change someone’s attitude.

There is enormous power in acknowledgement. Never underestimate how a kind word, or remembrance of a shared experience will brighten someone else’s day. It gives meaning to our lives to acknowledge others…and reminds us we are not alone in our struggles no matter how distant we may feel.

Humans use stories, the expression of feelings and memory, to communicate with others. It isn’t important if you are a gifted storyteller or not. The value is in having the courage to share yourself with others and the intent behind your words.

Social media has created great divides in our culture as has the Pandemic. But social media also makes it easier to connect with others in heartbeat.

My challenge to you:

Take a minute to remember a kindness someone has shown you in the past and share your story. You don’t need to name names. Just share a story of a kindness someone has shown you in the past.

I’ll go first.

When my first marriage fell apart I became depressed. Depression is a serious illness that can have disastrous consequences. In my case I became suicidal. It was a dark hole that I thought was inescapable. I was so embarrassed I tried to keep it hidden. I thought if I didn’t acknowledge it I could keep it secret. My existence was consumed by the terror of being found out. I had no idea my depression was shining like a beacon through every pore of my body.

Lost and confused, one day I happened into a diner near my house and sat at the counter. I was greeted with a smile and cheery attitude by one of the waitresses. Now, that was her job of course. But, for me it was a lifeline. Being able to connect with another human for even that brief second was enough to give me hope that a better day would come.

I quickly became a regular. I would sit at the counter and say very little. I wasn’t there to draw attention. I was there to absorb the life and positive energy around me with the hope that I would gain the strength and courage to face my demons and emerge as a whole person someday.

Now, to be fair…my journey was complex and there were many many people who helped me.

Chances are this person has never been aware of the impact of their kindness. But, I have never forgotten those fleeting moments of acceptance and comfort.

So, take a risk and share a kindness someone has shown you along the way. More importantly be aware of how you feel in the process. It may be difficult at first… but, with practice, it will become easier.

What do you have to lose?

Take a moment and reach out to those who have helped you. You’ll be helping yourself too.

We all have something to gain if we focus on kindness and connection instead of fear and division.

And, don’t forget:

It’s the little things that count.
Daily Acts Of Kindness
By: Saeed Anwer
Tags: Good Deeds, Kindness

Unfortunately, we miss some acts of Kindness in our daily life. We get many chances to do acts of Kindness in a day, if we do not miss that chances and do some good deeds it will be cause of our spiritual happiness.

I would like to share my last 24 hours acts of kindness that was the cause of my happiness.

1- I am living in an organization Dar-ul-Shafqat a hostel life. My friend Mr, Zubair was very sad about his university fee issue. I gave him good advice that how can be this issue will solve and tried to make him happy.

2- My junior Mr, Adeel Rauf wanted to make his Fiverr profile and he did not now how to make. I helped him and created his profile on Fiverr.

3- Last night i teach tenses my junior students and corrected their mistakes.

4- I helped my friend Ahmad about Fiverr trick how to rank Fiverr Gig who is new graphic designer .

5- I regularly advise my juniors about their future and also spend my time with them to play and enjoy to make them happy.

These were not big or hard tasks for me and not took much time but these were very helpful and important for students. So, we should always try our best to help and love others. We should never miss a single chance of doing act of Kindness. We will remain happy always by spreading Kindness.
Leadership Personality कैसे Develop करे — Leadership qualities in Hindi?
By: Quick Support Hindi - Increase Your Knowledge
Tags: Leadership Qualities, Leadership Development, Leadership, Leadership Skills, Leadership Training

We will provide you Education and Career Tips for Students, Career Enhancement, Exam Tips, Leadership Qualities, Courses for students and other Information.
The 5Rs of Transformation
By: Aruna Krishnan
Tags: Leadership Development, Leadership, Personal Growth, Podcast, Personal Development

2020 has prompted change in many ways:

Individuals have been forced to consider a different outlook on life Businesses have had to to rethink their operating models Relationships have either withered or have been fostered

All the changes have been prompted by a NEED… to survive, to improve, to succeed.

Change is not an easy process. It has to start with acknowledgement that there is a need for change, and followed up with acceptance of a new path forward. Easier said than done in most cases, right?

“Change is the only constant” is a common expression implying that the world moves forward and that we need to be prepared to adapt so as not to be left behind or lost. I like to use a variation of that phrase, “Impermanence is the only constant”. The difference in the latter expression being that it drives home that all aspects of life, good or bad, are not permanent. This helps us understand that we need to better appreciate the positives in our lives and have faith that we can and will overcome the negative. Mindset is everything!

Once we get our mindsets aligned with positive change, there are 5 key steps to transformation — Reflect, Rinse, Restart, Reinforce, Repeat.

Let’s see how these apply to a personal transformation:

Reflect — Asking ourselves what we want to change and why? What are our desired outcomes? How can we measure success?

Rinse — Releasing all the thoughts, forces or entities that have been creating negativity to our lives.

Restart — Reset in terms of mindset, relationships, and self. Aligning with our true “why” and associating with allies that can support you. Start a new today.

Reinforce — Change does not happen overnight. Persisting with new found ways to define the new you take time. The more you stay on the path, the more intuitive it becomes.

Repeat — Go back to “Reflect” to determine the progress you’ve made and adjustments needed.

In Season 3 of my podcast, Lead That Thing!, I focus on Personal Transformation with the 5Rs, providing a further breakdown and actionable advice on each phase. This has helped me get from “Fear to Freedom”.

You can listen to Episode 1 here — https://leadthatthing.podbean.com/e/s3-ep1-5rs-of-transformation-waruna-krishnan/
Hoarding Or Withholding Information — Mistakes Managers Make
By: Christina Lattimer
Tags: Leadership Development, Leadership, Management, Management And Leadership, Personal Development

Withholding Information

These leaders and managers secretly believe “knowledge is power” and, therefore, seek to keep any valuable knowledge to themselves. They selectively drip-feed information to employees on a “need to know” basis. This is a ploy to keep the power at the top. Hoarding or withholding information is nothing more than a fearful attempt to retain power.

These leaders and managers never see the need to have to give their people any details about why decisions are made. When and why things have changed, or what the key business drivers might be are frankly a mystery to their team.

The team get used to not being updated. Therefore, they understandably feel like they are “working in the dark”. This stunts the ability of most employees to make accurate and timely judgement calls.

Withholding or hoarding information makes those at the top of the organisation seem as if they have more power than they have because they are “in the know”.

Effective leaders and managers

Effective leaders and managers understand their teams need to know vital information about Why? What? Where? How? And When? because the teams need to be informed so they know what to do.

They happily share expertise and believe their role as a leader and manager is not only to get the work done but to help develop their team, and they do that by sharing all they know.

These leaders and managers explain business decisions with openness and honesty. trusting they made good judgments in good faith, with all the information they had at the time.

They realise they may need to make unpopular decisions at times, but also embrace the strength and ability of their teams to be able to absorb bad news. Secondly, they value honesty more than believing their team are too scared to face up to bad news. They know. only with total honesty. can their employees make informed decisions?

Find out about the 50 Mistakes Effective Leaders and Managers Avoid by clicking on the link below!

Not Listening to Good Ideas

Not Keeping Promises

Not Saying Thank You

Ignoring Inclusion

Being A People Pleaser

Have One Rule For Them

Not Supplying The Right Equipment

To find out all 50 Mistakes Click Here

Image by Tayeb MEZAHDIA from Pixabay

Originally published at https://peopledevelopmentmagazine.com.