Join thousands of people starting their week on a positive note. Every Sunday afternoon, I send out an upbeat idea to set you up for the week ahead.
It starts with you, but it doesn't end with you.
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Hi Reader, It was a big week at Graham HQ as I've finally been able to reveal the cover for my new book, KIND: The Quiet Power of Kindness at Work. I've been pretty taken aback by the response: lots of positive noise, and a general feeling that kindness at work is needed now more than ever. The book makes the case for kindness, not as a "nice to have" or "cherry on top" for already successful companies, but as a key ingredient for driving success. Kindness creates empathy, trust and eventually, psychological safety. From there, all the science points to better collaboration, retention, critical thinking, job satisfaction, creativity and ultimately, to higher productivity and performance. The book is available to pre-order in all good books shops and a couple of bad ones. I'll share details of special pre-order rewards nearer the time. But before you get your hands on a copy in October, how can you bring more kindness into the world around you? Well, the first and the eighth of my 8 Principles of Kindfulness at Work are.. 1.Kindness starts with you 8. It doesn't end with you If you want to bring more kindness into the world around you, the first step is to be kind to yourself. And it's hard to do. For a long time I didn't have enough of a focus on being kind to myself. I ran myself ragged, I was stressed, and because everything felt scarce, it meant I didn't operate from a place of abundance. I missed opportunities to be kind. When I run my Kindful Leadership workshops in organisations, one of the big lessons for people is always "Oh! Being kinder to myself means I'm role-modelling kindness - and self-kindness - for everyone around me!". So if you want to be kind, start with yourself. I know you might find that icky or challenging, but trust me, it's necessary and true. And then kindness doesn't end with you. We don't change the world, or change our teams just by the odd kind act we do. What changes it is when we start to create the conditions for others to be kind. You see this at work when someone is doing a sponsored run or collecting for someone's leaving present. They make it easy for you to jump in and do your bit. They removed the friction. People are busy, so how can you make it easier for everyone to be kind to each other? You can do this every day in your working culture. And the little things are the big things. It's the moment of appreciation so that everyone hears something kind about their work at the start of a meeting, or the Slack channel where people can talk about their mental health or offer support, or the framing of a conversation that makes sure that the quieter voices get enough airtime, or the expectation that if someone needs help, we'll rally. Often it takes a bit of bravery or at least stepping outside of your comfort zone to make these kinds of suggestions, but when you do, be sure that many others will thank you for it, and say they've been wanting to pluck up the courage to suggest something similar. So this week I invite you to explore Kindfulness. How can you bring more awareness and ease around the subject of kindness this week? And as always, I'd love to hear your stories. Have a great week, Graham |
Rev Up for the Week with Graham Allcott
Join thousands of people starting their week on a positive note. Every Sunday afternoon, I send out an upbeat idea to set you up for the week ahead.
Hi Reader, So I’ve been doing a few interviews over the last week: a few podcasts and even a national newspaper (get me!) to promote the book. Lots of the interviewers have focussed on my distinction between being nice and being kind. Some people think of them as one and the same, whereas I actually think they’re often closer to being opposites. I think this is an important distinction, because people fear being ‘too nice’ and worry that weakness means stuff doesn’t get done. I talked to a...
Hi Reader Welcome to Rev Up for the Week - my weekly Sunday 4.05pm dose of positivity for the week ahead. If you're new here, perhaps because of Talking Kindness, then welcome. I'm here every Sunday and my goal is that you'll find these emails useful, that they set you up for the week, and that maybe sometimes you'll even reply and tell me what you think. As you've probably seen this week, we've been busy running the Talking Kindness podcast summit, hosting conversations about kindness with...
Hi Reader, Welcome to this week's Rev Up for the Week. If you're new here, perhaps because one of your colleagues recommended it (see below!), or because you're buzzing for Talking Kindness tomorrow, then a very warm welcome to you. The plan is simple. Every Sunday at 4.05pm I'll send you a positive or productive idea for the week ahead. I've been sending these emails every Sunday for the last four years. It's always me writing it (never AI or someone else), and I always write it during the...