Random Acts of Kindness

Do you ever think about the concept of Karma and whether there really is such a thing? The Hindu and Buddhism religions do, and they define it like a bank account of positive credits for the good things a person does, and negative debits associated with a person’s less than desirable actions. According to this concept, a human’s future fate will be based on the balance of their Karma bank when they reach the end of their current lifetime. I think there is some merit to this concept from a fundamental perspective of trying to do the right thing, and not causing harm to others, but who is really keeping track of these actions?

In the business world, a company may be judged and perceived as being society friendly or a company which has a positive Karma bank balance if they are overtly giving back to the community. They are earning their Karma credit by making monetary donations or allowing their employees to volunteer their time on company hours to give back to society. Both the company and the employees who are involved with positive community interactions benefit tremendously, and the higher the level the engagement, the greater the positive feeling the employees have about their company as being a great company to work for. Yes, it can be expensive for a company to allow their employees to volunteer their time while they are “on-the-clock”, and not all companies can do this during the typical business day, but they do not have to, as there are other ways to give back to a community. A few examples would be to organize a drive to collect either common food items needed at a food bank, or clothing and toiletry donations for a community homeless shelter for families. Collecting pet supplies for your local animal shelter is also a good option to consider.

Going back to the concept of who is keeping track of the Karma points being earned, brings me to the point of how it really does not matter whether anyone is keeping track. You know yourself if there are days or weeks when you personally, or others around you are earning or having Karma “points” taken out of their Karma bank. On days when you are making more Karma deposits than withdrawals, I bet you feel much better and more fulfilled personally. Doing nice things for other people, especially when they least expect it is what I wish more people would consider doing. Call this “random acts of kindness”, but wouldn’t it be wonderful if every day each human committed to doing something kind or nice for another person or multiple people?

Yesterday I had an opportunity to do something unexpected for a group of strangers walking through a park. While I was flying a kite, I overheard them saying they wish they could be flying a kite like I was. Being the extrovert I am, I asked them if they would like to really fly a kite, and that I could make this possible due to the fact I had an extra kite in my car. In full disclosure each kite only cost one dollar, but does it really matter how much it cost? The point is these three people were amazed by the fact I gave them a kite they could queue up in five minutes and be flying a kite at the park like I was. The expression on their faces of amazement that I had and was going to give them a kite was such an amazing feeling for me, and I couldn’t stop smiling when I saw how happy they were flying their kite – and much better than I was. Seeing their kite flying better and higher than mine made me really happy, but I think they might have actually been happier, as it was a complete surprise to them they would be doing this on a Sunday afternoon.

The element of surprise and delight are two fairly easy things to bestow upon other people. My hope for the future is that more people do their part in trying to add Karma points to their life each day by doing nice things for other people. To add to this concept, I would especially like to see more Karma related examples in professional environments where this concept is often an underserved or underutilized one. So, what can you do for someone today or tomorrow which will cause them to smile from an act of kindness and add some Karma points to your bank?

Kathleen E. Murphy is the Founder, Chief Strategist and CMO of Market Me Too. Market Me Too has expertise in bridging marketing and sales teams and providing organizations techniques to accelerate their market growth, regardless of the industry they are in, or the business stage they are presently at. Contact Kathleen at kathymurphy@me.com.