...Bringing happiness and hope to someone’s day are an honor; this can be accomplished by giving or helping others without thought of self-benefit (Olpin & Hesson, 2016). This Random Act of Kindness (RAK) can be achieved by performing a selfless act to either help or positively affect the emotional state of another person (Passmore & Oades, 2015). The Random Act of Kindness that I performed was at a Dunkin Donuts; I asked the gentleman behind me if he was having a cup of coffee today. He responded. “yes.” I placed my order; the told the cashier that I was going to purchase the gentleman’s coffee. Both the clerk and the gentleman looked at me with a strange glance. I assured the gentleman that this was not a television prank and he started to laugh....
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...She handed me a five dollar bill through the car window, then turned and walked away. I don’t know her name, nor where she was going—the encounter was so brief—but I know I will never forget that lady stranger who generously saved me from a lot of frustration and prevented me from walking a mile or more to my destination. The scene was a downtown public parking lot. My husband, Leo, and I were already a half hour late for a statewide conference on the status of African American families and children. (CSAAFC). We had taken the wrong fork in the expressway, and found ourselves deadlocked in traffic that was backed up for four miles due to a serious accident. I told Leo to go the other way, but he didn’t. . . When we finally were able to exit, we tried to find parking in the designated free garages and lots near the hosting hotel. But, by now, they were all full. Not expecting this, neither of us had brought change; all we had was a twenty dollar bill. When we did find some space in a lot two blocks away from the conference, we were unable to pay the automated box for our slot; we needed five dollars. There was, handily, an ATM that charged $4.50 to get change for a twenty. But, there was no guarantee that there would be a five spot; we might have gotten just two tens for change. That wouldn’t have helped the situation. Besides, $4.50 just seemed like highway robbery. I wasn’t willing to pay it. We asked several people approaching the pay box if they could change a twenty. “No”...
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...Fulgham, Random Acts of Kindness by Janice Dineen and If by Rudyard Kipling illustrate how the reader can improve their way of living. These authors show what roles and responsibilities people need to become more mature. A Better Way tells someone that working together helps everyone. In this story a teacher asks his students to play musical chairs. They play and the strongest student wins, then he boasted about his victory. After that the teacher makes them play again, however there is no losers. When they got to no chairs everyone needed to find out a way to make it that everyone has somewhere to sit. The teacher placed the students in a circle in order for all of them to have a seat. This is a great example of team work. It shows how a group of people can work together and benefit everyone. Robert asked the question “Is it always to be a winners-losers world, or can we keep everyone in the game?” (p. 121) People must look out for each other, and aid in others struggles. The world can be a better place if people get together to solve problems. In return it will benefit everyone....
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...What would the world be like if there was no kindness? Would the world just continue on in one huge war? Would people only think about themselves? How would anyone go on without kindness? Kindness is acting on behalf of someone else and not expecting anything in return. Princess Diana once said, “Carry out a random act of kindness, with no expectation of reward, safe in the knowledge that one day someone might do the same for you.” Princess Diana was an excellent example of a kind person. She spent much of her time helping different charities, but one charity that she devoted a lot of her time to help was for the AIDS patients. Diana raised a ton of money to help find a cure for the disease and she would visit the patients in hospitals, holding...
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...After serving the lady free pancakes, she was asked to barrow a couple of dollars to cover a bus ride with the promise of returning the money soon. Not expecting a return, Ivory hands the lady two dollars because she believes in kindness. The struggling lady returned three weeks later with news of her new job and living place. She returned Ivory’s two dollars along with a meal covered on her check. Stunned to see the lady now on her feet, she feels a sense of accomplishment. Not only did she do a good deed for a random person, but she also started a continuous act of kindness. Some so little, such as a free stack of pancakes, can go a long way. It’s the simple things in life that make the biggest impact. Cause and Effect Ivory takes a fresh pot of coffee to back of the diner. Ivory sees the tired lady who asks the price of only one breakfast taco. Because the lady is obviously struggling Ivory offers free pancakes. Because the lady asked for 2 dollars with the promise of returning them Ivory gives the lady a couple dollars. Because Ivory gave the struggling lady two dollars The lady kept her promise and returned the money along with a meal in return. Because Ivory’s kindness came back around in her favor she believes random acts of kindness take care of everyone in the world, some way or another. *Peace Begins With One Person Ivory Harlow - San Antonio, Texas As heard on NPR’s npr.org, May 25, 2010 In the essay, Returning to what is Natural, Amilia Baxter writes...
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...philosophy is kindness.” The current situation is characterized by a spiritual impoverishment of the spiritual powers of man, which makes it almost impossible to moral action. Man denies given reality, transforming it into a free creative act. But where did he deny? In other words, if we use the analogy of the springboard, then that allows a person to jump, leads to jump and where he jumps, and who decide how far to jump? Springboard for itself can not cause a jump, but only one of the conditions of its possibility. That is, the existence of one does not require given reality denying it, because it is not in the animal world, but it exists in the human. Reality does not imply a project of transformation, but a man comes always dissatisfied in everything and everybody, and begins to break and build. There are always deployed vast horizons of opportunities in front of every man, to where he should decide to put oneself and choose one single path. And the situation is further complicated by the fact that people here cannot get rid of choice at random, here is required of him the necessity of choice. The choice should not only be free and personal, but necessary. Moreover, the need for external not taken into account, a person is looking for, demands from himself if he is honest with himself, this need to be an internal. On nothing else but the internal obligation, a person does not want and cannot stop, if he seeks reasons for their actions. Inner base of acts is - will. Act - a matter...
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...Random Acts of Kindness The simplest act of kindness can change a person’s life whether this act of kindness is performed or experienced. If everyone took the time to be kind to a stranger than the world wouldn’t be as chaotic as it is today. The world seems to have individuals that all they want to do is fight or kill other individuals that may not have even caused any harm to the individuals that are doing the fighting and killing. Every day there is one thing that you can do to brighten another person’s life which is one tiny step closer to having peace throughout the world. The random acts of kindness that I have experienced throughout my life have changed my view of the world and the individuals that live on earth. My very first act of kindness that was paid to me was that I was in the drive-thru lane at McDonalds where I was buying a Mc Café Chocolate Chip Frappe, when I went to pay for my beverage I found that the vehicle in front of me actually paid for my order already. The next random act of kindness that I experienced is when I was pulling into the parking lot of my grandmother’s hair salon and the customer that was pulling out of the parking lot stopped and walked over to the handicapped parking meter where they deposited two dollars into the meter where I pulled my grandmother’s van into the parking spot. This kind individual stayed and helped me to get my grandmother out of the van because it was a freezing cold winter day. The final act of kindness that I...
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...be no such thing a selfless act because all behavior is rooted in subjective frameworks that are projected onto the external world. The belief that the highest good a person can do is self-sacrifice is a personal belief, and the drive to adhere to this belief is self-serving. To not adhere to such a personal belief would cause cognitive dissonance, and the many clever ways that humans avoid cognitive dissonance have been made evident (Chapanis & Chapanis, 1964). Gandhi preaches about detachment from the fruits of action in his translation of the Bhagavad Gita. Doing good works in service to others without attachment to the fruits of your actions, or expecting anything in return, is a working definition of altruism. However, I argue that is impossible to be detached from the fruits of your actions, because we cannot escape the nature of the unconscious. Psychological knowledge has made it clear that charity, altruism, and random acts of kindness are superficial; at their root is a selfish endeavor. Psychology has exposed the inner life of the brain. Human behavior is no longer attributed to souls, spirits, or other supernatural forces. In the rigid, skeptical, and reductionist corners of academia, free will and personal responsibility have been replaced by a deterministic perspective. Psychological principles such as behaviorism, cognitive dissonance, and hedonism have undermined traditional beliefs about charity, altruism, and acts of kindness. From an evolutionary psychology...
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...Altruism and Psychology Adam Barker PSY 490 Capstone Course in Psychology Dennis Plunkett, MC, CC July 29, 2013 Altruism and Psychology The random act of kindness that I completed this week was buying an old man a coffee in front of me at Starbucks. He ordered a Grande Pike with room. I heard the order and said “I’ll get that miss” and without even hesitating handed over my card to pay for the drink. The older man look at me with a cracked smile and confused kind of look before muttering the words “you didn’t have to do that young man, but thank you” I replied with a smile on my face “no problem Sir”. Now, let’s look at a definition of altruism: Altruism involves the unselfish concern for other people. It involves doing things simply out of a desire to help, not because you feel obligated to out of duty, loyalty, or religious reasons. (psychology.about.com) When reading the above statement I think that it is important to point out the key words “unselfish, not because you feel obligated to out of duty, loyalty, or religious reasons”. By reading this it is my interpretation that in order to be altruistic you have to do something and NOT gain anything by doing it. What do you think? Now let’s breakdown the various reasons I could have done this: 1. To ensure that I did my random act of kindness as assigned by the school 2. To get a good feeling and a sense of pleasure, knowing that I helped someone 3. To make sure that I got points on my card 4. To speed up the process...
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...3 December 2014 The Power of Kindness I hope to someday make the world a better place to live. The root of this will come from the people who make up this world. Today’s society is so fast-paced and overwhelming that it is easy to forget to show appreciation to those who deserve it. By shining light on the lowered heads that may have forgotten just how important they are, I feel I can make the world a happier place. To do so I will start small and perform an act of kindness for the people I believe are the most worthy of it and ask only of them to pay the act of kindness forward. I hope the acts of kindness will create a chain reaction, resulting in a more positive living environment. The act of kindness has been proven to be powerful. A Ripple Kindness Project conducted in 2012 revealed the positive affects kindness has on people both mentally and physically (Kindness 1). With such benefits, why are these acts not being carried out on a daily basis? I hope to create a ripple effect of my own once completing my acts of kindness. There were so many factors to consider when choosing the acts of kindness I wanted to do. I looked at who I thought deserved the act the most, what act I should perform, whether I wanted to stay anonymous or not, when I should execute the act, and how I should do it. Ultimately, I chose to perform an act of kindness to random men and women in downtown Grand Rapids, my fellow coworkers, and an elderly woman in my Public Speaking class. I chose these...
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...the following categories: Good Samaritan conduct or random acts of kindness Acts of vigilantism-violating the law to enforce the law Acts of civil disobedience-violating the law to change the law Criminal acts committed by professionals in the course of their employment Questions The following will be answered about the examples: Do you think the individual made the best decision possible given the circumstances? Could you see yourself acting similarly in similar circumstances? Example 1 the victim had her car stolen and she proceeded to give chase and grab bystander’s attention, she made the best decision possible however I don’t think this was very safe looking backwards but I probably would have done the same thing. Example 2 was a random act of kindness I do believe this was the thing to do and would like to think that I would be so kindhearted to react the same way and pay the blind man without any regards for heroism. The third example in this set is also random act of kindness and good Samaritans. The community worked together after a collision involving a mother and daughter. The people pulled her from the vehicle and waited with the child in the cool building until rescue was complete. The next set of three examples are “Acts of vigilantism”, it is the case of Trayvon Martin. George Zimmerman was a self-proclaimed vigilante protecting the neighborhood. Mr. Zimmerman did not act in the best interest of the neighborhood he jumped to...
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...graduating high school in a white robe and carrying a 4.0 all four years. KI graduated in honor, and not only made my family proud, I was proud of myself. Or drawing on past achievements, perhaps it is me winning a $1,000 scholarship from a writing contest I was in back in high school. Or paying for my first car all by myself. Or how about the time when I was in the newspaper every week for the amount of goals and how well of a soccer game I played. In more of the recent past, I helped my mom finally find her soulmate. It took determination and time. At this stage of my life, my greatest achievement might be my ability to maintain a positive attitude and be committed to contributing to making the world a better place. By small and random acts of kindness and compassion. By listening, far more than I speak. By challenging myself. By always finding the good in people. Being a positive thinker is the only good way to be living. Negativity leads to a negative life and that’s not what you want to have if you want to have a happy, positive, healthy and successful life. No matter how bad your life may seem if you really take a good look at your current state of affairs, it is most probably much better than many others in the world. Yes, I understand that there are many people that are going through...
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...discussed include explaining the value and team-based culture, the mission statement, the main areas covered in the handbook and how this handbook will move us forward. The handbook will also cover employer responsibilities and employee rights. The company is a value and team-based culture. Baderman Island Resort aims to please the customers who cause employees to stretch the rules at times to make the guests comfortable. The company also conducts random acts of kindness, which also support a value-based culture. Boardman Management Group empowers its employees, which encourages a team experience as they consider all employees as family. The values of the company are articulated through the mission statement. The mission statement reads “…dedicated to managing leisure and convention focused resorts that provide a unique and quality experience to guests and visitors. The Board of Directors and operational leaders in the organization, empowers its staff to offer unsurpassed quality of customer service, through individual acts of random kindness and specialty services” (Boardman Management Group, 2012, p. 1). This mission statement reflects that the company is a value and team-based culture. This type of culture will permits adjustments to ensure the most comfortable stay for the guests as this their home away from home. It takes a team working together to provide this experience. The main areas covered in the employee handbook are the cultural values of the organization, employer responsibilities...
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...Importance of Kindness By: Adnan Siddavatam Have you ever wondered why it is important to be kind to others? To me, my kindness lets other people know they are important to me. First, our actions are an important part of how kind we are. Second, what we say to others can show how respectful and kind you are. Third, our attitude towards others can impact how we act with them if we are kind. I believe that kindness has an important role in our everyday because it can help me be a better person. Admittedly, our actions can show how kind we are. I think that my kindness towards others can be shown through random acts of kindness. For instance, when it snows outside, I can go outside and shovel people’s sidewalks and driveways without being asked. Also, helping others who are need is a great way to show kindness. For example, picture an old man who is having problems crossing the street. I can take the liberty of helping him out because it is the kind thing to do. Another way to demonstrate kindness through my actions is by volunteering for good causes. By giving my time, I show that other people are important to me. Overall, our actions can show the kindness we have in our hearts. Obviously, what we say to other people is a big part of kindness. Great way to show kindness to others and how important they are to you, is by using words like that are polite. For example, saying words like “please” and “thank you,” this is a great way to show kindness towards others. I can show...
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...What you drive, what you wear, and where you live can say a lot about your social standing. It’s understandable that you want to be surrounded by fancy thing, there comes a time in your life when you realize there are more important things. In Madison’s case it was the welfare of her beloved friend who was suffering with some mental health issues. Knowing that her friend couldn’t overcome her depression alone she had an idea. After several hours of shopping and crafting she had come up with cards that each had inspiration quotes. Madison began to place these cards in her friend’s locker every morning, but she didn’t sign them. Although some might see it as a random act of kindness, this was who Madison was. At a young age it was clear that Madison Noelle Aitken was no ordinary child. Unlike many kids she didn’t fuss or act selfish when sharing. Her mother couldn’t recall a time in her youth when she was ever difficult in any way. “She was always an easy going child, she never gave me any problems,” she said. Compared to other mothers with toddlers her age, Malinda Aitken had relaxed, giving child. Throughout the years, Madison's personality had flourished along with her maturity. Although merely eighteen years of age, she has been able to positively influence and uplift the lives of many through her good deeds. Thanks to her father, Ross Aitken, Madison learned all the qualities which she possesses: determination, and always being selfless. These teachings that Malinda taught...
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