kindness –

selfless acts of giving

The Practice

Kindness as a practice is about selflessness. It’s about supporting another and giving for the sake of giving.

The Research

• Research shows that kindness is innate and the children begin shows acts of kindness and a very young age – it’s part of our nature to be kind.

• Engaging in regular acts of kindness impacts your brain by creating new neural pathways that enhance your feelings of well-being and boost your mood.

• In one study, those who regularly offered help to others had a lower risk of dying over a five-year period than those who did not.

• One study showed that kindness is contagious. Witnessing an act of kindness can generate good feelings in others and inspire them to do the same.

• One study showed that practicing kindness has a lasting effect on our happiness. Showing gratitude for an act of kindness gave a huge and lasting boost to happiness.

How To Start Practicing

Practice Mindfulness – Slowing down and getting to know ourselves in moments of stillness help us to better know what to do when life is fast-paced and difficult. These are the moments when we often want or need kindness at our fingertips.

Journal – Start a kindness journal and count your kindnesses! One study showed that counting your kindnesses over the course of a week increased happiness and left people feeling more grateful.

Practice Worthiness – Be kind to yourself. Practice Worthiness and get in touch with your humanness. People who know how to be kind to themselves find more opportunities to share kindness with others.

Practice Self-Compassion. In her research, Kristen Neff identified three components of self-compassion, 1) Self-Kindness, 2) Common Humanity and 3) Mindfulness. When we can be compassionate and kind with ourselves we generate more capacity to be compassionate and kind with others.

Foundational Practices – Engage in LTP Foundational Practices like Sleep, Nourishment and Movement. When we take care of some of our most basic needs we feel more balanced and capable of kindness.