Taking inspiration from the iconic ‘Pay It Forward’ film, adapted from the novel of the same name, let’s all pledge to spread genuine goodness and kindle the warmth of kindness, creating a domino effect that will envelope our society and keep spreading. Let’s indulge our vanity in little random acts of kindness that will spur the beneficiary to pass it on and continue the perpetrated goodness, infusing the air with positive vibes of sharing and caring that the Holy month upholds. Let’s experience the joys of giving.
As Winston Churchill said, “We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.” So let’s find ways to give and share in the blessings of the season. From a heartfelt ‘thank you’ to your domestic help or a sincere compliment to your employee to adopting a stray animal or volunteering time and money to the charity in your area, the list of items on the ‘giving’ section is endless.
To begin, create the right mindset – one that helps you open up to the idea of reaching out to complete strangers. For the idea behind the ‘pay it forward’ concept is to enter into unwritten pacts with complete strangers to create a ripple effect of sharing and caring. Your act of kindness ought to spur the recipient into repaying that act by reaching out to another random stranger in need. For, giving comes easily when the recipient is a friend or a family member, difficult when the focus is on a complete stranger. There is bound to be some amount of hesitancy. But accept the credo behind the concept of pay it forward and the joys of giving will be doubled.
Alongside the right mindset, what you would also need is a keen eye to look out for opportunities to help and an understanding that giving could be as simple as holding the door open to the person behind you to financially assisting a person in need. Even the smallest act of kindness counts in creating the ripple effect in the society.
Here are a few doable ideas to get you started on the sharing and caring route.
The https://payitforwardday.com/ recommends paying for someone’s coffee at the café you are in or getting the next person’s food. It also suggests hosting pay-it-forward activities in the school, office or community to spread the message and initiate the ripple effect needed to make it a success.
Pay for coffee/food
Paying for someone’s coffee or food in a café or a restaurant may not be a need-based help as your intended recipient is already in, but your little act could brighten up his/her mood and even induce him/her to do the same to another. Do it subtly so only you and the recipient know about your good deed.
Clean-up
Being a part of voluntary work to clean up beaches or public places is itself an act of giving without expecting anything in return. Working alongside members of the community will help you stay connected to the environment you live in and to the society you belong to.
Donate
Whether it is old books or clothes that you no longer wear, donating things to local organisations involved in helping the underprivileged in the society is the easiest way to initiate the sharing venture. Alternately, you could create goodwill among random strangers by leaving books that you are done with reading in public places – even cafes and gardens.
Complement
Nothing is as easy as a complement, but few are able to articulate genuine praise. And if the person in question is a stranger, that can seem like a major chore. Find ways to complement the people around you and watch the joy of your words fill them up. If voicing words of praise is difficult, stick post it notes where the person will get your beautiful message; WhatsApp is another easy source. To give it another twist, you could even leave a note on a stranger’s car expressing your appreciation of their parking skills. May be even tell a parent how well behaved their child is.
Courtesy
Courtesy always works. Saying ‘hi’ to the person in the lift, ‘thank you’ to the taxi driver who dropped you to your destination, letting the shopper with a few items at the supermarket go ahead of you, smiling warmly at a stranger…small acts that have significant impact.
Self-kindness
After all is said and done, what is of major importance in this journey towards creating a caring society is being kind to yourself. It is only when you learn self-kindness will you be able to spread the essence of kindness to others. Self-kindness is all about generating feelings of care and comfort towards yourself; stopping those self-critical thoughts and being more tolerant of your flaws and inadequacies. Soon you will be able to help others in inculcating self-kindness in their lives.
Let’s pay it forward, friends!