Lucy Egan takes a closer look at World Kindness Day and how we can all spread some kindness magic in each other’s lives.

The last few years have been tough. The addition of Covid-19 has altered the way we live our lives, interact with each other and how we show we care. We have all had plans change, suffered losses (of any kind) and seen our paths diverge before our very eyes.

It’s for this reason that November 13 is so important. What’s so special about November 13? It is World Kindness Day, established by World Kindness Australia in 2011. Created in 2009 as a school campaign to counteract “bystander behaviour”, it has since become a world-wide phenomenon.

According to the Stay Kind website, World Kindness Day is about “…being kind to each other, yourself and the world.” They also say that if every Australian acted kindly on November 13, we would have over 25 million acts of kindness nation-wide. 

It may seem a bit odd to have a day dedicated to something that can be done any day of the year, but World Kindness Day brings to the forefront a larger systemic issue of time and thoughtfulness. Often we are all so busy and busy being busy, that we forget to do something small that could improve our life or the lives of others.

Taking the time out of your day to do something constructive for someone else can be just as helpful for your self-esteem. By allowing yourself to slow down to imagine or plan something for someone else you are actively practicing mindfulness, another buzzword for the modern age. Mindfulness, simply, is the art of being present. And in a life that constantly demands more and as the year speeds towards the festive season, it can be important to think of ways to slow down and make a difference to your life, as well as someone else’s.

It can be as simple as making someone a coffee, offering to help lift something heavy, bringing them their favourite snack or telling them they look nice today. Kindness looks different for everyone and means different things to everyone. For more ideas on being kind, check out the Stay Kind website and even make a pledge! And for more information on the origins of World Kindness Day, click this link: World Kindness Australia.

The Cambridge Dictionary defines kindness as, “the quality of being generous, helpful, caring about other people.” So this November 13, join the millions of people performing an act of kindness to help the world seem a little brighter.

Feature Image by Callum Pull, Yak Designer