Friday, July 19, 2019

WIRTW #560 (the “more kindness” edition) #IChooseKindness

Yesterday, I asked you all to join me in choosing kindness, and talked about Richard Cook’s Don’t Hurt Anyone Project. Over on LinkedIn, Richard took the time to share his thoughts on my post, which I’m sharing with y’all here.

Hi Jon, I am all in for #IChooseKindness Go! It is wonderful to see so many supportive comments. As you mentioned, I started the #donthurtanyoneproject There are a confluence of factors that led me to create something that felt so quaint and yet so urgent. One was sitting in the crowded gate area of airports waiting for a delayed flight. In my former career I did a lot of that. Inevitably I had the opportunity to talk with quite a few individuals. Sometimes we shared many of the same perspectives. Others not so much. But never in the latter of those two categories did a person get up and move to the furthest seat from me or I the same. We didn’t shout over each other. We just talked. When boarding time came we exchanged courtesies, sometimes shook hands and a few times figured out if we could be seated together to keep talking. It was hard for me to reconcile the “Divided States of America” narrative. No doubt that Americans disagree. However, I would suggest that for every ugly incident or rant that makes the news, there are far more that stop to help a motorist with a flat, make room in their family for a foster child or volunteer to help those struggling. Those people don’t ask for recognition but we need their energy. Urgently.

Let me know that you are choosing kindness by dropping a comment below, or by sharing your thoughts on any of your social channels with the hashtag #IChooseKindness.

Here’s what I read this week:

Discrimination

HR & Employee Relations

Technology

Wage & Hour

Labor

OSHA & Safety