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It’s Only Common Sense: Random Acts of Kindness—Getting Caught Doing the Right Thing

Have you ever had the driver in front of you at the toll booth pay your toll or the person ahead of you in the fast food line pay for your order? Has your neighbor ever cleared the snow on your sidewalk or driveway? Has the mechanic servicing your car ever filled up your tires with air?

Now think about how you felt when these things happened. Did you feel grateful and have your faith in humankind is restored? I wish I could bottle up that feeling for when I felt down or like I’d lost faith in fellow human beings. Better yet, wouldn’t you love to be able to give that feeling to other people, especially your customers, and know that your own associates are always ready to get caught performing random acts of kindness?

In the spirit of Robert F. Kennedy channeling George Bernard Shaw, “Some men see things as they are and ask, ‘Why?’ I dream things that never were and ask, ‘Why not?’” So I ask you, why not? Why not train your people to work together in a culture of delivering random acts of kindness to your customers, vendors, and even to one another? Start today by taking one small step. Develop your own culture of doing the right thing for everyone you deal with. The best way to create the culture is to live it every day. As a company leader, it is your responsibility to lead by example. Let your team catch you doing random acts of kindness; after a while, it will become part of your corporate culture.

Here are a few suggestions to get you started with random acts of kindness at work:

1. Call some of your customers. Ask them how things are going and what you could do to better service them.
2. Hand-deliver your product to a customer. When the timing is right, making a delivery yourself can show the customer how much you care.
3. When your team is having a meeting with one of your customers, attend and contribute in any humble way that you can. Participate as a member of the team, not the leader.
4. Send an affirming note to someone on your team who has accomplished something significant.
5. Send an encouraging note to someone who lost an order.
6. Remember that most everyone you work with has a family and is working to support them. In the end, you impact the welfare of that family.  
7. Get to know a new member of your team. Talk to them and make them feel welcome.

The following ideas will also influence corporate culture and help you to lead by example:

1. Communicate readily and openly. As the leader, it is your responsibility to talk about your company and the history and values.
2. Treat everyone as equal, no matter their position. They are all part of the team.
3. Always speak highly of your customers. Nothing destroys a customer-focused company more than a leader bad-mouthing a customer. No matter how much trouble a customer causes you and your company, never ever speak badly of them.
4. Never speak poorly of your associates or vendors. You are setting an example of kindness for others to emulate.
5. Remember that your voice resonates ten times more than anyone else’s in the company. As the leader, people look to you for direction. Lead them in the direction you want your company to go.
6. When things get tough, keep your head on when others lose theirs. Grace under pressure is the sign of a great and kind leader. 
7. Finally, when you catch someone performing an act of kindness, acknowledge it. Let them know that you noticed and appreciated them doing it.

It’s only common sense.

Dan Beaulieu is the president of D.B. Management Group.