Be Benevolent, Not Malevolent

Nowadays, when everyone is in so much rush and consumed by the urgency of their busy lives it’s often difficult to take the time to spread a little happiness to others in the course of your day.

But some small act of goodness may make all the difference especially to someone who is feeling at a particularly low ebb. If it doesn’t work and they aren’t at all grateful, then don’t let that deter you from bestowing the same benevolence on the next person you come into contact with.

Whether you are religious or not, goodness towards others can become as infectious as laughter and helps to instil, accumulate or restore positive feelings in the minds of many. If everyone followed ‘The golden rule’ and treated their fellow human beings with the same respect they expect from others, what a positive world it would be!

For instance, if you’re at a busy supermarket and you’re taller than the next person, you’ll never see eye to eye with them but please don’t trample on them! Offer to help if you see them struggling to get something down from a high shelf. Maybe a shorter person will one day help you by noticing that your shoelace is undone. People can help each other in some way and instigate a chain reaction of goodness in their daily lives.

Something as simple as a smile or a wave works wonders in creating a chain reaction of goodness. If you’re walking along the road and smile at everyone who passes you by, they may also feel inclined to smile back and maybe will smile at the next person they see. It costs nothing to spread a little happiness and if people can’t be bothered to respond then that’s their loss - if they prefer to be grumpy then so be it.

Anyone can be a complete misery on a stormy day especially if they’ve been waiting in the rain for a bus that’s been delayed but a smile could brighten their world and some friendly banter may even help to make their wait and yours more bearable. Share your time with them and you may even learn something new.

It’s all down to spreading positive karma; if you look on the bright side then things will be more bearable for yourself and those around you and can make a big difference to your overall health and well-being.

Be polite and courteous to someone even if they are angry with you; this takes some doing but will ensure that they don’t instigate a chain reaction of negativity that threatens to destroy your chain reaction of goodness. Be benevolent, not malevolent!

Come rain or shine, the birds will always sing - and people should always smile.