Genuinely kind people don't get enough credit. People seem to think that being nice is just a personality trait, but it's actually a commitment to treat people well, even when it's hard. It's not just being nice to the people you like.
It's choosing to be kind to people when you're in a bad mood, or when they're being annoying.
It's choosing to be kind to people who your friends don't like.
It's choosing to be kind to people who you don't particularly like.
It's choosing to be kind to people who you envy.
I'm not saying that you can't be a kind person and stand up for yourself, or tell someone to fuck off when they're doing something genuinely harmful, but there are a million petty reasons people use to justify treating people badly.
It is a conscious choice, made over and over, often several times a day, to treat people with kindness and respect, even when they make it hard. So appreciate the consistently kind people in your life, because they work hard to be that way, and they really don't have to.
Something that comes up when I discuss kindness with people is that people who I experience as being kind believe that they're just faking it. They don't believe it counts if you're kind to someone who you're secretly annoyed by.
But that's exactly what kindness is. It's making the effort to treat people well when you don't feel like it.
If anything it should count MORE when it's not effortless.
