15,612,147 Acts of Kindness Today

Every day across the globe more than 15 million acts of human kindness are committed, but of course very few of us ever learn any of them. On the other hand, through social media most of us are exposed, often multiple times, to many acts of human depravity, abuse, violence, deception, cheating, and rude or boorish behavior.

A quick example from my part of the world. Yesterday I met Tony in the local (Plymouth, MN) Home Depot parking lot. He was volunteering his time, outside on a hot muggy summer day, to raise money for a local group supporting Covid-safe summer activities for at-risk youth. Tony is an amazing gentleman in his 60's who would have been a lot more comfortable yesterday in his cool basement watching television, but there he was sweating in the hot sun, raising funds to help children. Except for those he met directly in the Home Depot parking lot yesterday, no one will hear about Tony. On the other hand, there were two folks a few miles away (in Marshall, MN) who showed up at a WalMart, and through social media almost all of us were exposed to their stupidity:

If you didn't to see this story yesterday then let me apologize up front, because I have no desire to propagate this act of human idiocy. I would much prefer to show you a photo of Tony, but his isn't the kind of story that prompts people to take a picture and share. Plus Tony wasn't interested in "tooting my own horn," he said.

Each day I consciously remind myself that even though I don't see or hear about them, there are approximately 15 million acts of human kindness that occur in our world. How do I get to that number? The most recent estimate of our global population is 7,806,073,500 so if we assume that 25% of us will NEVER do anything nice for another person, but the rest will commit just ONE act of human kindness per YEAR, that gets us to 15 million acts of kindness per day. Or put another way, I'm estimating that each day just one out of 500 people commits an act of kindness.

So I'm estimating that today - whatever day you are reading this - there will be 15,612,147 acts of human kindness throughout the world.

My goal isn't to ignore all the awful things that SOME humans do to others. I do want to know about those things and do what I can to prevent them. But I won't want the social media filter/amplifier to alter my optimistic perception of human nature - I know we are difficult and problematic creatures - but we are also amazing and capable of extraordinary kindness towards one another. And wherever I have traveled - throughout the US, Canada, Asia, Europe, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia - I have experienced that capacity for kindness.

To make up to the vile image above, let me share one moment of unexpected kindness...

I've spoken to many people who feel cynical and hopeless about the state of our world today. I've been especially struck by the number of young people who are certain that the future of humanity (and their own personal future) is likely to be bleak and oppressive. And I wonder if the social media filter/amplifier is contributing to - or perhaps is the root source of - this pervasive despondency. And I'm worried that if enough of use are convinced that the future is dreary and desolate, it could become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

So I'm going to do what I can to push in the other direction, first by BEING kind whenever I have the opportunity. But also by NOTICING the kindness of others and SHARING it whenever I can.

If you wish to, you can follow me here on LinkedIn and/or on Twitter (where I post more briefly and frequently): @danrust