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The Joy of Giving

 In Mumbai Smiles

28th aprilOne synonym for the word kindness is the term humanity. Kindness is essentially a recognition of the fact that we’re all human, an acknowledgment that we’re all in this together. Most of what makes life worth living depends on at least some of us being altruistic some of the time. We cannot address problems like global climate change, the spread of disease and political violence by appealing only to selfish motives.

Kindness is similar to happiness as both can’t be bought. Professor Sam Bowles says, “Economists often make the mistake of assuming people are inherently selfish, and that we will only do something good for a financial reward or to avoid a fine.” But Bowles’ report, published in Science last year, found otherwise. He reported a research on six childcare centers that started inflicting fines on parents, who were late in picking up their children. After the fines were introduced, parents were twice as likely to be late. A similar study also found women were actually less likely to donate blood if they were paid.

The good news is that it’s easy to train ourselves to be kinder. “People should do more acts of kindness than they usually do, and do them on a regular basis, like five acts of kindness every Monday” says professor Lyumbomirsky. Kindness, then, is not just a matter of choice, but an attitude you carry that can make a difference in someone else’s life, however small it may be.

This article is part of the Joy of Giving series that we have launched on our blog today.In the next few weeks, every Monday, you will witness, through our blog, the joy one experiences by giving. Please share your comments and experiences.

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