Empathy

 "Empathy is about finding echoes of another person in yourself." - Mohsin Hamid

"The greatest gift you can give someone is your kindness, because it makes someone feel right at home even when they're not." - Carol Rifka Brunt

Everyone we meet is fighting a battle we know nothing about. Kindness and empathy can go a long way in making their fight a little easier.

Here are five ways we can show kindness and empathy in our professional lives:

🎯1. Listen actively: In work environments, it's common to be caught up in our own task lists and goals. However, actively listening to our colleagues' concerns, opinions, and challenges can show empathy. It can make them feel heard and valued, thus strengthening your working relationships.

🎯2. Offer support: Kindness can take many forms, and offering support is one of them. Sometimes, a colleague might be struggling with work overload, personal issues, or just feeling demotivated. Offering support, whether through a helping hand or just a kind word, can help alleviate their stress and make them feel valued.

🎯3. Avoid judgment: Empathy is about putting ourself in another person's shoes. It's important to avoid judging others based on their work style, communication style, or personal background. Instead, focus on understanding their perspectives and respecting their differences.

🎯4. Celebrate successes: Acknowledging and celebrating achievements can go a long way. Whether it's a small win or a big one, recognizing someone's success can show empathy and build a sense of community within a work environment.

🎯5. Look for opportunities to help: Being proactive is another way to show kindness and empathy. Look for opportunities where we can offer support, help a colleague with their workload, or simply offer a word of encouragement. This can foster a positive work culture and make our colleagues feel appreciated and supported.

Never Give Up !!

There’s a point in your life when you know who stays forever and who’s just around for a while. People change, but so do you. Sometimes for the better and sometimes for the worse. Bad things happen to everyone, you’re not in it alone. People lie and some people just don’t care how you feel. Your heart beats no matter how much pain you’re in. Everything will be okay eventually. There are always people in your life that just make your day no matter the miles. I know all about distance, I’ve been dealing with it all my life, so don’t tell me it’s easy, but it’s worth it. I’d rather stay in touch with the people I love than just drop it and forget about it. You don’t forget about the ones you love, it doesn’t work like that. Give it all you got, and live your life to the fullest. People would kill to have what you have. Someone always has it worse off than you, but that doesn’t mean your pain doesn’t count.

I think everyone at some point, goes through that one moment where they think “my God, I can’t do this”. But you know what? You can. No matter how close you are to the edge, no matter how badly you feel like giving up, or think it’s best to do so rather than have to put up with the pain - don’t. Don’t lose hope that things will get better. Don’t give up, because there is someone out there who will make you smile in a way no one else ever could. Keep that glimmer of hope alive in your heart, because someone is out there searching for your smile. So wipe your tears and keep your head held high.

“Time heals all wounds but it takes a little push on our part. Acceptance plays a part. Not all love stories end with “…and they live happily ever after.” Sometimes we have to part because of circumstances beyond our control. We have to suffer if it would mean happiness for others. We have to cry to temporarily let go of the pain. Every beginning has its end like every dawn has its dusk. It’s something we can’t control, something we had to live up.”

Lesson On Life

There was a man who had four sons. He wanted his sons to learn not to judge things too quickly. So he sent them each on a quest, in turn, to go and look at a pear tree that was a great distance away.

The first son went in the winter, the second in the spring, the third in summer, and the youngest son in the fall.

When they had all gone and come back, he called them together to describe what they had seen. 

The first son said that the tree was ugly, bent, and twisted.

The second son said no it was covered with green buds and full of promise.

The third son disagreed; he said it was laden with blossoms that smelled so sweet and looked so beautiful, it was the most graceful thing he had ever seen.

The last son disagreed with all of them; he said it was ripe and drooping with fruit, full of life and fulfillment. 

The man then explained to his sons that they were all right, because they had each seen but only one season in the tree's life.

He told them that you cannot judge a tree, or a person, by only one season, and that the essence of who they are and the pleasure, joy, and love that come from that life can only be measured at the end, when all the seasons are up.

If you give up when it's winter, you will miss the promise of your spring, the beauty of your summer, fulfillment of your fall.

Moral lessons:
Don't let the pain of one season destroy the joy of all the rest.

Don't judge life by one difficult season. 

Persevere through the difficult patches and better times are sure to come some time or later ...........