It won't sound like a big surprise when I tell you that kindness plays an important role in a person's wellbeing. It can lead to changes like higher self-esteem(自尊心) and lower blood pressure. Even just witnessing acts of kindness can make us happier.
"From giving away a cup of hot chocolate in a park to giving away a gift in the lab, those performing an act of kindness consistently underestimated how positive their receivers would feel, thinking their act was of less value than receivers perceived it to be," states a study.
Yet, why is there this difference between what we think someone will feel from an act of kindness versus what they do feel? Why do we underestimate the impact we have on others?
Many of us don't have a real sense of our value. It's been estimated that as many as 85 percent of people struggle with low self-esteem. This "voice" tends to shift our focus inward assessing our every move, and having bad effect on our relationships.
Unlike a conscience(良心), this inner critic doesn't motivate positive behavior. It encourages us to hold back feeding us thoughts like, "Don't stick your neck out": "No one wants to hear from you"; and "You're going to make a fool of yourself."
One wonderful way to fight against our critical inner voice is through acts of being kind to others. We must also try to see ourselves through the eyes of the people we affect. The degree to which we're able to do that will help determine our own happiness along with the happiness we light up in others.
A. However, the work doesn't stop there.
B. People may lower the value of their own kind comments.
C. We all carry around a "critical inner voice" that tends to put us down.
D. Instead of seeing what we have to offer, we may think of ourselves as a burden.
E. This misunderstanding suggests that people devalue their own actions in relation to others.
F. Instead, it turns us against ourselves, making us underestimate our beneficial effect on others.
G. Yet, people may not truly know the impact that even the smallest of kind acts can have on another person.
