People tend to underrate being nice.
Some might even consider being nice is a sign of weakness. As the Brooklyn Dodgers manager Leo Durocher famously put it, “Nice guys finish last.”
I don’t believe that was true in 1946, and I definitely don’t believe that’s true today.
In today’s environment, when we cross paths with someone — with the requisite 6 feet of distance, of course — whether at a grocery store or on Zoom or perhaps over social channels, we don’t know what that person might be experiencing at work or life in general. The individual might be a friend or a colleague or a complete stranger. It doesn’t matter. Given everything going on in the world, how we treat each other takes on even greater importance.
Which brings me to this story on Nextdoor (flagged by Heather). Spoiler alert, it has a happy ending.
Thank You
I want to thank the many neighbors who have helped me so much. I am 90 years old, handicapped and most bed-ridden due to sickness, and live alone. No family near-by and my friends are all dead. I don’t know what I would do without my kind neighbors, some I know and others I have never met.
I also want to thank the Hamilton Ave. Safeway Store. I was out of everything and had nothing in the house to eat (I hesitate asking people for help) so I got out of bed and went to the Hamilton Safeway. While shopping, I fell down — through no fault of the store. This sometimes happens to me, where my legs seems to melt and I fall and can’t get up. The manager, Michelle, was right there to help me. I assured her it was not Safeway’s fault and that I fall occasionally. But she and her staff were so kind. They got me some water and a chair and check out my groceries for me.
Michelle insisted on following me home and carrying my groceries to the house, and made sure I was okay.
Even though the Coronavirus is so horrible, I have found out how wonderful people are, even to strangers.
Thank you.
To shine a few extra lumens of light on the topic, we kicked off our #BeNice campaign on social channels last month. By underlining the campaign with levity, we hoped to avoid coming off as the third-grade teacher who can’t wait to find a kid with untied shoes. As shared in previous posts, the bar for levity isn’t as high as humor. If we can a prompt someone to twitch a facial muscle headed for grin — doesn’t have to be a full-blown grin — that’s a win.
Developing this artwork has proved to be a fun exercise for our designers and social team. The movie marquee serving as the hero image for this post got things rolling. Next came our riff on the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.
Yes, life is better than fiction.
This week brings an image that we affectionately refer to as “Breaking Nice.”
Incongruence in one of the most effective ways to stop the reader/viewer. Hard to achieve a greater level of incongruence than showing Walt and Jesse baking an apple pie. And yes that is Mike Ehrmantraut looking through the back window.
As for what’s ahead next week, check our social channels at:
Reading The Wall Street Journal last weekend, I came across a fitting quote from Nikki Haley, ex-governor of South Carolina, that puts a bow on this post —
“Being grateful is about the future, not the past. Gratitude means looking at all that you have and understanding it didn’t all come from you. Real, active gratitude carries a responsibility to share the blessings in your life with others, to make a conscious effort to make life better for others. Gratitude doesn’t mean closing your eyes to the bad in the world but opening your eyes to the good. And there is a lot of good.”
Comments
Steve Fowler
I very much appreciate this timely reminder. A little levity can go a long way and make a huge difference in another’s life. Thanks Lou!
Lou Hoffman
Merci!