Being friendly pays off!

"A kind word costs nothing, and yet it is the most beautiful of all gifts."
(Daphne du Maurier)
For weeks, stickers with the request "Be kind" have been stuck up in various places around the whole university and around the city. A nice reminder. It seems as though we have rather neglected being kind. And it is not just here at home that people want to see more kindness; far away from Würzburg, in France, a café has had enough of rude people. Here you pay 7 euros for "A coffee/Un cafe", 4.25 euros for "A coffee, please/Un cafe, s'il vous plait" and 1.40 euros for "Good day, a coffee please/Bonjour, un cafe s'il vous plait". What is wrong with our society? Do we need higher prices for unpleasant people before we become nicer again? It seems as though we all need to be reminded to treat each other more kindly. A sad fact, if you ask me. I do not consider myself unkind, but rather polite and in good spirits. Nevertheless, the "Be kind" has made me consciously pay attention to being more attentive and friendlier. What came out of it? Nerves are spared and it makes you yourself happier. It is really lovely to see how the people around me react to a bit more kindness. It takes
only small favours in everyday life, such as holding the door for someone in a wheelchair, letting the person behind you go first at the till, or simply greeting people and smiling at them. However, what brings twice as much joy, but requires more courage, is giving a stranger a compliment just like that. If you mean it sincerely, this small gesture can brighten someone's day and brings good cheer. Just recently I was sitting next to a woman at the bar in a pub whom I did not know. She was dressed really well and after a while I said to her: "Wow, that outfit really looks great on you!". It was not that difficult and I got a surprised "Thanks!" with quite a big smile in return. She probably did not expect that, because in the female world, unfortunately, comparing oneself and being envious is much more widespread. We girls should stop doing that and tell each other something nice more often. Of course, that applies to everyone else too. Try it out, be good people and let yourselves be surprised what happens. It does not take up time, it is not exhausting and it does not hurt either. Quite the opposite – it is actually fun. Perhaps one or another of us needs to tear their gaze away from their mobile phone more often in order to perceive what is happening around them, but it is definitely worth it. You get a smile or kind words back from people, which really do the soul good. If you radiate positive energy, it comes back to you. And that makes everyday life, although there are clearly bigger problems, simply more beautiful.