Have you ever been walking along the street when you pass some random person when by chance you make eye contact and they ask, “Hello, how are you today”?
How good does that make you feel?
These days we go on our way with our eyes glued to our phone, or our heads down thinking about a deadline at work, what will we have for dinner, the car being due for registration or what we are doing on the weekend. It does not cost us anything to be polite, but it can certainly be priceless to make someone feel good and put them in a great mood to tackle what lays ahead for the rest of the day!
This used to be a common thing when I was younger that everyone that you passed you would acknowledge them, whether it be a nod of the head, a hello, G`day or a smile. None of us know what sort of day, week, month or even year for that matter the person we are about to pass has had. Unfortunately, the world that we live in these days people are to scared to make eye contact, shy or apprehensive to talk to a stranger. Take a second and think to yourself if you were the person that a stranger asked, “hello how are you today” what would you do? If it is me that has asked the question, personally I know how good it makes me feel. The person may even stop and be up for a chat, especially if it is an elderly person. It could be a mother who is having a stressful day chasing around the kids while trying to do the groceries or a father who is going through a messy divorce and is at risk of not seeing his kids!
You often see mothers in carparks at supermarkets struggling to get the kids in and load the groceries in the car, it does not hurt to ask them “do you need a hand there”. Whether it is taking the trolley back or putting the groceries or pram in the boot of the car. I have experienced this in the past and you can just see in their body language how grateful they are for your assistance. Very similar to when elderly people are struggling to carry things or trying to cross a busy road, offering help can mean they get to where they need to go safely.
So next time you are walking along the street, on the bus or train going to work, out at the department stores, at the local pub or club or just taking your dog for a walk, remember to look up, look around and get a real buzz by saying “hello how are you today” to a random person!
It does not cost us anything to be polite, but it can certainly be priceless to make someone feel good and put them in a great mood to tackle what lays ahead for the rest of the day!
By Danny Pryde
