Kindness in the Workplace
As mentioned in a previous blog post, this year Mental Health Awareness Week is focussed on kindness. The landmark week highlights awareness of mental health and the importance of looking after our mental well-being.
Kindness comes in many forms, and whilst every human will show some form of kindness from time to time, it can still be interpreted as a form of weakness.
However this self centric thinking may actually be counter-productive. According to a recent study by The University of Cambridge, people who were treated kindly at work repaid that kindness by being 278% more generous to coworkers compared to the normative group.
The Impact of Kindness and its Benefits
The act of kindness is beneficial not only to the person receiving the kindness, but also the giver.
Christine Carter of the Greater Good Science Center stated “About half of participants in one study reported that they feel stronger and more energetic after helping others; many also reported feeling calmer and less depressed, with increased feelings of self-worth”. Showing that the impact of even displaying kindness to others has profoundly positive effects.
It is also proven across various studies that displaying kindness:
• Increases production of endorphins, the brain’s homemade painkiller.
• Lowers cortisol (a stress hormone).
• Improves social anxiety
• Reduces depression
• Improves physical health
A Cambridge University study concluded a project undertaken in a Spanish corporate workplace by stating: “Practicing prosociality daily is both emotionally reinforcing and contagious (inspiring kindness and generating hedonic rewards in others) while receiving prosociality is an unequivocal positive experience.”. This shows that not only does displaying kindness provide huge rewards, it is contagious and the rewards can begin to spread to those who experience kindness.
As we have seen, the dividends it repays do not just benefit the individual, there are practical benefits to business associated with a healthy mind. A healthy state of mind promotes positive forward thinking and is associated with higher productivity. Everyone benefits together when we excel with kindness. Make the workplace a welcome environment for everyone and reap the rewards.
On Friday 22nd the final blog for Mental Health Awareness 2020 will be released. The blog will be available to read at: https://www.inpsyght.co.uk/resources/
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