Well, it's been a week since I issued the challenge to take the time to offer a smile and maybe a hello to everyone for no reason other than they are another person. (See the post here.) I said I'd come back and share what I noticed. And ask you what you did if you took up the challenge.
The biggest thing I noticed is that lots of people were taken by surprise - especially when they were people who usually get ignored. It caught people off guard because they were used to everyone being in their own world as they passed by. Some returned the smile or hello, but others were too surprised to do so.
The biggest thing I noticed was how it impacted me. I enjoyed my day more, and "bad days" weren't near as bad and didn't seem to last all day. It's interesting to me how something so simple can have such an impact.
We need to learn to notice the world around us. I'm as guilty as the next person for walking down the street ignoring everyone or being so busy with my phone that I don't acknowledge those who are providing a service to me in the grocery store or coffee shop. But I'm seeing that I need to change things. I need to learn to notice people. To pay attention.
I've known for a long time that it can change my day when someone notices enough to give me a smile in passing, but I've not always done the same in return. It's time to make that change. It's time to make it a habit to notice people around me.
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