World Kindness Day

World Kindness Day

World Kindness Day is celebrated on 13 November. How can we become happier by doing kind things for others? And how can we help the world by doing kind things for ourselves?

Do the preparation task first. Then read the article and do the exercises.

Preparation

Can you remember a time when somebody was kind to you? Perhaps a person allowed you to go in front of them in a queue. Maybe your sister phoned you to ask how your week was going. Or perhaps a stranger or a friend helped you in a much deeper way. There are a million ways to offer kindness. And at a time when the world seems to have so many problems, some people have started to take the issue of kindness very seriously indeed!

Why be kind?

Few people would disagree with the idea that a kind action is good for the soul. It is a win-win situation, leading to a sense of well-being both for the receiver of this kind gesture, as well as for the person who does the action. As a simple example, let’s imagine you have a workmate who always does a very good job. How about taking a moment to mention this to them, just in conversation or perhaps by email? The effects of this will probably be quite clear: your workmate will be happy to receive some praise and, in addition, you will probably feel good about yourself for having spread a little joy.

What are ‘random acts of kindness’?

Many organisations try to encourage people to do kind acts, wherever and whenever they can. The idea behind this is that it doesn’t take any major plan to be kind, just a little bit of effort. Perhaps the strongest supporters of this idea are the Random Acts of Kindness (RAK) Foundation, who work with schools and companies to teach people kindness skills. They operate under the beliefs that kindness can be taught and that it is contagious. Their activities range from suggesting kind acts to allowing their website-users to become ‘RAKtivists’ (people who officially register themselves as activists of kindness).

How can I be kind?

Apart from using your own common sense, the RAK website suggests some more imaginative ways to show kindness. Generally, these fall into three categories. The first is interpersonal kindness. Some examples are donating old clothes to charity or writing a positive online comment about a restaurant that you like. The second is environmental kindness, which could mean simply recycling or organising a group event to clean a local park or beach. The third category is less obvious: personal kindness, which means treating yourself kindly. Some examples are taking a walk in nature or setting yourself an objective to complain less. The logic is that by being kind to yourself, you will automatically be kinder to the world around you.

What is World Kindness Day?

This is an annual celebration which takes place on 13 November each year. The day is marked in many countries, drawing attention to the amazing work of organisations and individuals in local communities. How do people celebrate this day? Well, by being kind … and having lots of fun. One typical event is to use ‘kindness cards’. These are small cards which you hand to somebody when you do a kind act for them – with the message that now it is the other person’s turn to ‘pass on’ the card by doing a kind act for another person.

Most experts on kindness agree that it has a sort of ripple effect. This means that one kind action tends to lead to more and more. So don’t wait for kindness to find you today, go and start a new ripple!

Sources

Task 1

Task 2

Discussion

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Submitted by Claudiafiorella on Sat, 09/03/2024 - 15:41

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"First of all, I completely agree with your comments. For me, it's important that people are more kind to each other. I think everyone should be aware of being more empathetic and friendly towards the people around us. Regarding the other question, I believe we can encourage these behaviors through famous people. They have many followers, and with this strategy, it's easier to reach out to everyone."

Submitted by BritishBahar on Sat, 02/12/2023 - 15:35

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I agree to this, well-being start with kind behavior especially to treat to yourself. Anyway ones who appreciate them fail or achievements naturally they can look their around wiht clear glass and they can carry their heart kindness and naivety. For progressing our inside kindness needs action and does practice. İt can be to notice ever emotions you experience without judge.İt can be relation bad feeling such a jealousy, depression ect.

Submitted by LuisFrancisco on Mon, 27/11/2023 - 23:20

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Definitely, the world should remember how important being kind is, nowadays is easy to find people worried about their problems, and situations like anxiety, depression, and stress are so common in young people and adults.
Being kind is important in our lives as long as we treat ourselves well, I love reading and practicing the golden rules, when you don't know where to start the golden rules are there. Some simple rules or slides of advice can change your life forever. Some rules I can remember... always say great things about others, teach a value to a child, take care of a pet if you can, and spend less time on social media and use that time for visiting family o friends. some good and kind habits create a good life.

Submitted by hong yuan on Sun, 19/11/2023 - 20:19

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Yes, I agree, because it's a win-win situation. I try to answer the first question in English, when I read some good articles, I like to share them with others, in my opinion, spreading good ideas can bring positive thinking. I think smile is a good gift to others, a simple smile can give others our kindness and recognition. We have a saying: Do good deeds, even small ones, and never forget them; Don't do bad things, even small ones.

Submitted by zainabhamdan on Thu, 16/11/2023 - 10:37

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I agree with that topic. kindness is essential for ourselves in first place. That it make us felling well-doing in ourselves and its makes contagious to others.

Submitted by amoon25 on Wed, 08/11/2023 - 15:54

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I couldn't agree more on this topic! With all the problems in our world, it's nice to be kind to each other. Never underestimate the power of kindness, as it might change someone's day and make life totally worth living. It can also brighten the mood of someone who is having a bad day and bring a smile to their face. So, let's be kind!

Submitted by 1Enginner on Sat, 24/12/2022 - 19:50

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I happy for to be kindness is day. I aggree with was written stuff by authors , I want to add that we not olny must be kind to human but animal and all world also. stay with smile and long live kindness day!

Submitted by hardik on Sat, 05/11/2022 - 11:52

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Always treat everyone kindly not rudely . Because by this we can make anyone happy

Submitted by Argonauta on Sat, 13/08/2022 - 23:42

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With good people, I will be kind with bad ones I will be a joust

Submitted by jyoti Chaudhary on Sat, 07/05/2022 - 12:42

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Can you suggest other ideas for how we can be kind? Do you agree that it is important to treat yourself kindly?
yes, I agree that it is the important to treat everyone for kind. I'm always very kind to animals and people. and everyone how always angry with everyone he wants to become a kind person. you can feel happy if you are kind to everyone.