Be The Change You Want To See in The World

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"Be the change you want to see in the world" - Mohandas Gandhi.

I used to curse the world for being the way it is. Why can't people be more polite? Why is there so much talk of war and not so much talk about peace? Why can't the world be a better place?

That sort of thinking got me - nowhere! I would start to feel down, angry and disheartened. Not a great place to be. I still feel those things at times but now I feel I can at least do something about it. It may be a small thing but from small seeds large trees can grow. That is my hope anyway. What changed then?

Well I read the quote (above) from Mohandas Ghandi. "Be the change you want to see in the world!".

If you want the world to be more kind and compassionate then be more kind and compassionate.

If you want the world to talk more about peace and less about war then talk more about peace.

If you want people to be more forgiving then be more forgiving.

If you want people to be more friendly and caring at work then be more friendly and caring at work.

I have an example to illustrate the power of this technique. I usually commute to work by bus. The traffic can be crazy and the bus driver has to put up with a lot of stress while he ferries us to our jobs. I try and make it habbit of thanking the bus driver as I leave the bus. People don't always do this but an interesting thing happens. Sometimes those ahead of me in the line leaving the bus don't say anything as they exit until it comes to my turn. I turn to the bus driver and say "Thank you." and you know what happens? Everyone behind me in the line then says thank you to the bus driver as they leave the bus. Ive seen this happen so many times.

This is a small thing but I am sure the bus driver feels better and everyone who thanked him feels better too. These small actions can have a knock on effect where people will continue to be more open and friendly to others. That is what I hope anyway!

So no matter how small an impact you may think you have "being the change you want to see in the world" can indeed make the world a better place.

Give it a go!

Allen