Have you ever heard any of the phrases, such as “kindness is contagious” or “pay it forward”? There has been scientific research that investigated and found that kindness can spread in a variety of ways. The Pay It Forward movement has been going on for several years now and has an interesting history of how it may have started. Over the years, this movement has inspired a book, a movie, and even Pay It Forward Day. When you do a random act of kindness for someone, it often results in a ripple effect and inspires others to pay it forward. Here are some ways you can inspire others to pay it forward and make an impact on the lives of others.
Be The Change You Want To Inspire
If you want to see more kindness in the world, you’ve got to be the kindness in the world. People are most inspired by what they see others doing. So what does kindness mean to you? First, think about the change you want to see happen in the world. Then find ways you can demonstrate the actions needed to make these changes.
For example, you may have had a loved one go through a health scare and hospitalization. You remember how scary it was for them and how lonely they were while in the hospital. They were away from home and all of its comforts. You decided to create a basket of comfort care items and deliver it to your loved one while they were in the hospital. You saw the reaction on their face, how truly appreciative they were, and how they felt loved and cared for. Inspire others by creating a fundraiser to donate more comfort care baskets. You can donate them to other patients in local hospitals and nursing homes. Not only did you inspire others, but you also provided an opportunity for others to pay it forward to someone else. You provided a way for many other patients to receive a special gift to bring them some comfort during their hospitalization.
Be A Mentor
There are countless stories of how people completely transformed their lives because they had a mentor in their life that inspired them. Sometimes people need an accountability partner. It’s great to have someone who has been where they are and found a way to improve their situation. Having a mentor can make such a difference in a person’s life that they are inspired to become a mentor to someone else. This is a wonderful way to pay it forward.
Teach Your Children How To Be Kind
Social learning theory is the study of how groups interact. It’s based on the principle that people will behave similarly to how they see others in their families behave. For example, have you ever noticed that a child would start to behave like the children they hang out with? “Monkey see, monkey do” is a phrase that describes this theory. When children grow up in a family in which kindness and compassion are normal, they will most likely display those traits as well.
The Kindness Chronicles
The truth is, we do random acts of kindness just about every day without even realizing it. You may have unknowingly inspired someone to pay it forward a time or two. Most people don’t boast or brag about the kind thing they did for someone. If sharing your examples of what you do for people is uncomfortable to you, you don’t need to announce it. You can very quietly do your random acts of kindness and trust that your kindness inspired someone regardless. You may unknowingly start a chain of paying it forward, touching many lives in the process. Just like the Florida woman who treated a complete stranger to a cup of coffee at Starbucks and kicked off a chain of 377 other customers paying it forward! I’m sure she never imagined how many smiles that one act of kindness would generate that day!