Kindness is free

 

Something that nobody mentioned to me when I was studying was that the connections you make are so helpful.

Speaking with people working in other teams let you know not only what that team does but also who would be suitable to use their service. Building links with different agencies allows knowledge to be built around where you can signpost people to if your service is not appropriate for them.

I started making connections when I was still studying and was on placement. I would attend conferences and go introduce myself to the people who had been speaking. This not only allowed me to get their contact details which would allow me to contact them to ask questions or organise something it also meant that they knew who I was. I did not know if this had any impact until I was in an online session more recently.

One of the people I had gone and introduced myself to at one of these types of events said that she remembered meeting me because I was one of the only people to come up and introduce themselves who was a student. She commented how she had discussed it with the other people she was stood with at the time and how impressed they all were. I had something similar said about my friendliness and how welcome it had made them feel when they joined my cohort late. All I had done was invited them to come and sit with us which I didn’t feel was a big deal but made a big difference to them.

Since that occasion I have reflected a lot of how what we say and do has an impact on those around us. That can be positive or negative. I like to think that the majority that come from me are positive but of course you never know.

There is a lot I do without thinking about it because I was brought up to treat others how I would like to be treated. I think a lot of frustration I have around certain situations comes from the fact that I forget that not everybody thinks the same way as I do. I try do everything in my power to make sure that people feel included, supported, and made comfortable in a situation. There are definitely occasions where this is easier said than done but that is the way with a lot of things in life.

I also think that the actions we take or the way we act don’t just impact the people we come into contact with. The experiences we have with people we generally discuss with other people. Most often negative ones but there also occasions where the positive things we do are discussed when we aren’t present. I had an experience recently where I had done some work for my team and one of the managers shared thanks directly with me but also included their manager in the email. This action didn’t take long but it made a difference to my day. It is another example of how what we say and do has an impact, and it doesn’t have to take long to do.

It reminds me of the quote by Maya Angelou “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”