Keeping it Real- Nine Days of Nice

Two occurrences in the past week have made me stop and question how grown adults, with fully developed brains, all who have experienced puberty, can be so mean and childish.

The first incident happened to my sister. It's not my story to tell, by let's just say that the behavior expressed towards her was something I would expect from teenage girls, not a grown adult.

Think "Mean Girls".

The second, happened to my barre3 colleague and friend, Sara Catherine. As she was biking home last week she heard another cyclist coming up behind her to pass on the left. As he passed, he slowed down, looked her straight in the face and with matter of fact tone he said "Your ass is huge". Period. No chuckle. No smile. No tone to imply that he thought a big ass is a good thing. Just a plain fact. "Your ass is huge". And because she is a far bigger person, her only reply was that he was the "rudest person in the world." I am pretty sure I would have gone down to his level and screamed back something far more vulgar.

After hearing these two stories I was left flabbergasted! I just don't get it. How can people be so cruel? I'm not perfect. I have mean thoughts. I say mean things every now and again, but for the most part, I try to keep mean thoughts to myself. Why? Because nothing good comes of verbalizing it. NOTHING!

Remember this...



It's so simple, yet apparently not everyone has seen Bambi?

So, last month it was a 28 day hydration challenge, and this month my goal is to start a movement around being nice. And so begins "Nine Days of Nice." Nine days is a manageable amount of time to really track your behavior and to be mindful and aware of how your behavior impacts your life and the lives of others.  I considered doing nineteen, or ninety, but I've decided to start small, because even small changes can have a big impact.

So what is involved in the "Nine Days of Nice" challenge?

1) Being nice and kind to yourself. 
It's hard to treat others nicely if you can't even be kind to yourself. It starts with you. That means making time for yourself, taking care of yourself and doing things that fuel your body, mind and soul in a positive way. Katie shared this quote with me last week, and it really resonated.

"Stop hating yourself for everything that you aren't. Start loving yourself for everything that you are." 

2) Be nice and kind to your family and friends. 
It is very easy to be rude, impatient, discourteous, impolite, and unkind to the people you love the most. Think about the number of times during your day when you "snap" at your spouse or partner, or "bark" something at your child. It's often the people we love and cherish the most that we treat the worst. Remember my post about "Habits of Happy Couples". One of the habits was focusing more on what your partner does right than what he or she does wrong. Just as you want to lift yourself up, think about lifting up those who are closest to you. Celebrate their strengths. Make them feel good, and I am certain everyone will benefit.

3) Be nice and kind to strangers/Practice random acts of kindness. 
Remember the Golden Rule, "One should treat others as one would like others to treat oneself." I'm pretty sure the A** Hole who yelled at Sara Catherine wouldn't want someone to treat him the way he treated her. Bottom line... be nice, courteous, patient, and polite (TO EVERYONE). I am certain good things will come of it.  For example, on Friday I held the door for an old, handicapped man. We passed him walking slowly into the gym with his cane. Despite the fact that he was steps behind me, I stood at the door and held it open. He said to me "you don't have to do that." And my response, "I don't have to, but it's the polite and kind thing to do, and there is no way I can teach my child to be kind and courteous if I don't do it myself." We had a nice exchange, and I left with my heart feeling a little more "full."

Mother Teresa said it best.

I hope all of you will join me in "Nine Days of Nice". Honestly I'm hoping this starts some sort of a movement. As I said, small changes can have a big impact. If all of you who read this join me for "Nine Days of Nice," and if you share this through social media and get others to join in, just think how much of a positive impact we will make in our own lives and in the lives of so many others. It will surely be immeasurable! 

Feel free to use #9daysofnice in your instagram photos, Facebook posts and tweets. I would love to see how the movement takes form! 

Who's with me?