Random Acts of Kindness
February 5, 2009
Every so often, I see bumper stickers that say something like, “Commit Random Acts of Kindness!” To be honest, I normally dismiss these as a bit over-idealistic. The level of work we have to do—both inside and outside of our jobs—can leave us with precious little time to entertain such noble and altruistic thoughts.
But I had an interesting and encouraging experience a few weeks ago that helped to somewhat restore my faith in human nature.
My 11-year-old son and I will be riding in the MS-150 later this month. The MS-150 is a 150-mile bike ride to help raise funds for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. As you might imagine, biking 150 miles over two days requires a fair amount of preparation.
My son and I were on a training ride when another cyclist rode up and joined us on our ride. We talked about bicycles and good bicycling routes in the area. Then I mentioned that my son and I were in training for the MS-150 and had to raise a minimum of $150 each. He was impressed that an 11-year-old would do something like that.
Then, while we were riding, he opened up his “handlebar pack,” handed a $5 bill to my son, and said, “Here—now you only need $145 more!” Needless to say, my son was thrilled. The cyclist then rode on ahead.
About ten minutes later, he doubled back and joined us again. He asked my son if he had any bike shorts. (He didn’t.) A cycling jersey? (No.) He then told us that he used to own a bike shop, and he had a lot of inventory left over. If we wanted to stop by his house, he might have some clothes my son could wear.
When we arrived at his house, he took us into his garage and proceeded to hand my son three beautiful cycling jerseys, two pair of padded shorts, two pair of gloves, and a seat pack for storing tools and an extra tube. All of this was brand new—well over $250 worth of clothing and equipment.
He commented that he had loved to ride when he was a child; and if my son enjoyed riding and was willing to ride 150 miles for such a good cause, then the clothing would be more useful with my son than it would be in his garage.
Weeks later, I’m still amazed at this person’s generosity. And my son has learned a valuable lesson about “giving.”
Helping other people for no other reason than being nice makes both the giver and receiver feel great. Try to find something you can do that might have a similar impact on someone in your organization. It’s infectious, and it can have a profound impact on an organization’s culture.
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