In life and business - be kind

Today I arrived home from a tiring, testing week of mistakes and complaints to a lovely surprise. Not from whom I would expect.

A simple bunch of flowers - co incidentally my favourites - with a note "Have a great weekend".

It was all I needed to re invigorate my soul. It brought me to tears.

In life, it is the little things that matter. Those simple gestures and ideas that create kindness to others.

Looking at my business - it is easy to think I don't care - "You didn't reply to my email when I wanted you to ", You didn't call me straight back even if you were with someone" "You didn't fit me in when it suited me"...

The problem is I DO CARE - I care so much I will work day and night to meet my commitments in my business.

In your business there will be times perhaps when your clients/customers think you don't care - your product didn't meet their expectations, you didn't seem to 'go the extra mile'. At these times I ask you to try a little kindness. Think about what they are seeing - is your Latte late because they are trying to keep everyone happy ? Does that extra minute you had to wait while they finished serving someone else lose you anything precious ?

Kindness involves empathy and thinking about what the other person is experiencing and feeling. it's hard to do when you are on a deadline. It's hard to do when others use it to take advantage. It's hard to put aside your own needs.

In the past I have been guilty of being unkind. I have been guilty of putting my needs first. Most of all I was guilty of putting the needs of those who were the noisiest first! To the detriment of those who didn't!

A kind word, a wink, a small gesture - hell even a "How are you?" and a moment to actually listen and CARE about the answer - go a long way.

How can you be kind in your business and not be stampeded by the needs of others?

1. Make fences and witches hats with your time and attention. I am not talking about obstructing your workflow - rather to direct the traffic. If you don't perform well in the morning or late in the afternoon - refuse to book time then. Be ruthless and honest that even if it suits their needs - they are not getting you at your best.

2. Say NO - fast, loud and firm - NO I will not drive to collect your paperwork - that is not what we agreed - you agreed to bring it to me - NO I can't take your phone call while someone else has my attention - NO you don't need to speak to me, one of my staff is just as skilled and actually sometimes even specialist in what you want! Trust me - I only surround myself with the best.

3.Give back - be kind to who is kind to you - be especially kind to those who are not - they do not see the human value of what you are doing - model the correct behaviour. Take the high road. Pay it forward - rent the movie - you get the picture!!

4. Surround yourself with the good eggs. You know the sort - they irrepressibly make you smile - when you see them you just want to throw them a wink. The bad eggs - sorry they are harder to spot - they usually bring you down , negate your vibe and suck your energy - It's not their fault - they always have to find someone to blame or complain to - seek them out, identify them and repeat step 1 2 and a 3 !

I'm not perfect - I often get it wrong - but I sleep well at night because I know my intention was always to be kind.