“Use your voice for kindness, your ears for empathy, your hands for helping others, your mind for truth, and your heart for compassionate love.” – David Scott
What are the Character Traits of Kindness? This was something a friend asked me recently when I was talking about being kind to those around us. “Tell me what does it look like?” was in effect the question posed. How does kindness manifest itself and what are the underlying characteristics of a kind person?
Kindness is not only about what you do but how you do it. It can accompany every type of action from praise to criticism. When an action comes from a place of empathy, you experience kindness.
Kindness comes in many forms. It’s about honesty, empathy, forgiveness, trust, patience, compassion and humility.
Honesty: Honesty doesn’t always mean you are being kind. You can be honest and kind at the same time though. When you need to be honest, but it feels like a criticism, you should find a way to deliver it with kindness, say with a soft voice, a hand on someone’s shoulder or the way you word your response.
Forgiveness: When you forgive others and yourself, you are freeing yourself from blame and condemnation. It allows you to be happy. Forgiveness is a form of kindness as it lets you accept others as they are. “Forgive others, not because they deserve forgiveness, but because you deserve peace”
Trust: Trust is different from honesty. When you show kindness to others, it builds their trust in you. There are many ways to do this; keep your word, ask what they need, then help them get it.
Empathy: Kindness requires empathy. It means putting yourself in another’s position and feelings. Empathy allows you to understand and be sensitive to what others are feeling. It is important to building positive relationships and for good communication.
Patience: Patience is needed when being kind. Patience makes us take the time to get our thoughts and actions in order before we react. A kind act is often given with patience. “A moment of patience in a moment of anger saves you a hundred moments of regret.”
Compassion: This is when we feel for another’s problems and take action to help. Compassion is an action of kindness. It is a guide for kindness.
Humility: Being humble means you do things out of the kindness of your heart, not expecting anything in return. This is a true act of kindness.
Kindness has all these character traits in it. Being honest, building trust, being humble, compassionate and empathetic all work together to perform true acts of kindness.
Are you a kind person? Are these character traits that you recognise or want to show to the world around you?