kindness

Countering With Kindness

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countering with kindnessDavid R. Hamilton PhD. – A lady named Maureen once told me of the time when she was driving towards the Forth Road Bridge in Scotland.

It’s a toll bridge and a mile or two from the toll plaza she pulled out in front of another driver. It was an accident. We’ve all done it. A momentary lapse in concentration, a blind spot on the mirror.

Fortunately, there was no collision, but the other driver was furious. He peeped his horn for what seemed like an hour. He then drew up alongside her. His face was red with rage. He mouthed some expletives before flashing her a middle-finger gesture and speeding off. Continue reading →

Remember to Be Kind to Yourself

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be kind to yourselfDavid R. Hamilton PhD. – There’s plenty that can be said about the importance and the benefit of being kind to people. I’ve certainly said plenty.

But let’s also remember to be kind to ourselves.

Many of us find this difficult and, in the spirit of honesty, I do too. Some of the difficulty originates from the idea that being kind to yourself is selfish, the notion that it means to put yourself first; be kind to yourself instead of others or, at the very least, before you help others. Continue reading →

How Kindness Impacts the Brain and Benefits Mental Health

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kindnessDavid R. Hamilton PhD. – Kindness makes us happier and also protects against depression. That’s what the science says.

In a typical ‘kindness study’, people are asked to carry out a certain number of acts of kindness over the course of a day, a week, a month, or longer, and their happiness levels are either compared against people not doing the kindnesses or against their own happiness before they began the study.

In every version of these sorts of studies, the results are clear. Being kind makes us happy. Continue reading →

Never underestimate the power of kindness

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kindnessThe Angels – A baby in a manger… a flame in the lamp… such small things really. The babe and the lamp were tiny lights in a darkened and chaotic world, a world in which there was political unrest, financial challenges, divisiveness between castes and nations – not unlike your world today. What difference could a baby make? What difference could even a miraculous lamp symbolize? What difference can your kindness to a stranger make, or your anonymous dollar in the charitable donation pot? How does your willingness to be happy regardless of what the world is doing around you shine a light upon this earth?

What difference can you – a single person make in this great big, very chaotic world? Continue reading →

Kindfulness

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David R. Hamilton Ph.D. – Most people nowadays have heard of mindfulness. The simplest form of mindfulness is to breathe and to simply notice that it’s what you’re doing right now. So you might place your attention on what breathing feels like for you or notice what it sounds like. Here, you’re being mindful of your breathing, hence ‘mindfulness’.

What about kindfulness? Well, instead of focusing on your breath, you focus instead on kindness. Continue reading →