5 Uplifting Ways to Build Each Other Up
Could you imagine a world where people build others up more than they tear them down? There are so many things we could achieve if that was the reality.
More people would believe in themselves enough to chase their dreams. We’d all be more confident in trying to solve the problems in our society.
I would think so many amazing things would come into this world. With less insecurities, people would be more comfortable being who they are.
We’d all be happier, and everything would be more peaceful. It really makes you wonder why we don’t treat each other better.
But just because we don’t have that world doesn’t mean we can’t try to. Here are a few ways we can focus more on building each other up.
5 ways to build each other up
1. Give compliments often
A few words can be all that it takes to make someone feel good. Just telling someone they look nice might turn their whole day around.
Or complimenting someone on their work could give them confidence they need to keep pursuing a goal.
I can recall many times where I doubted whether I could really do much musically. But then when one person would tell me how good I was, it would help reignite what I already knew.
One compliment can make someone believe in the talent they have again. I don’t know if there’s anyone who can sustain a level of confidence without others encouraging them.
Remember that feeling you felt when others told you how good you were at something. Try to give that same feeling to another person by complimenting them.
But don’t just say it to say it of course. Be genuine in telling someone what you think is good about them.
Here are some potential examples:
- You look nice today.
- I appreciate how thoughtful you are.
- You’re really funny.
- You’re very smart.
2. Be gentle when people make mistakes
When people make mistakes, I’ve seen people handle it in one of two ways. They either completely rip them apart for not being perfect, or they gently correct them.
Our culture still seems to uphold this idea of tough disciplinary being the best leaders. But often they can actually be the worst.
Whether it’s employees or volunteers, they can end up feeling overworked and underappreciated. They don’t gain any confidence that they can be better and end up feeling worse about themselves.
This kind of leadership, while maybe it’s produced a few great people, it’s produced a whole lot of damaged ones too (including the greats).
Let’s choose to practice sensitive leadership by accepting that people are going to make mistakes sometimes. But the way to help them get better is to not only emphasize what they did wrong but to tell them that they can do it right.
We can either make people feel worse than they already do or make them feel better. The better we all feel, the better we’ll all be.
Here’s a few things you could say the next time someone makes mistake:
- It’s okay. We all make mistakes. Here’s what you can do to avoid this mistake next time.
- Even though you made this mistake, I appreciate you did all of these other things right.
- You’ll do better next time. I believe in what you can achieve.
3. Enlighten someone
I’ve had people give me so much wisdom that I don’t know where I’d be without it.
I’m sure you’ve had people tell you things that made a difference in the person you’ve become today.
You can potentially do the same thing for someone else by sharing the knowledge you have.
It could be some knowledge and skills you’ve learned, or just your own personal experience.
There are lots of things you probably know now that you wish you would have known when you were younger.
Imagine how impactful it might be for someone to get that information early in life. It can be our gift to the next generation to help them make good decisions.
While they’ll still of course make mistakes, hopefully they won’t make as many as we did.
4. Be a light in this world
In some cases, you don’t even have to say anything directly. Just your positive energy can build people up.
You can be an inspiration to others of what a good attitude and a motivated mind can accomplish.
We all have people we’ve looked to who just by the way they were made us want to be like that. To be something better for ourselves.
Shine bright in who you are and show everyone how bright they can shine too.
5. Help people out
There are people every day in dire need of help. They don’t know if they can push through to another day.
One selfless act of kindness could be just the thing they need to uplift them again. You can donate to your local charities or volunteer your time at a shelter.
Even with your friends and family, you never know how much they’re struggling. Go out of your way to make their life a little bit easier for a moment.
You can renew their belief that good things can happen to them and that life can get better.
Imagine a reality where fewer people feel like hurting themselves. Fewer people feel like hurting others because others hurt them.
Where people feel a greater sense of love for one another. Where we all make each other feel like we can accomplish almost anything.
That’s the society we can live in, and it can all start with just being kinder to one another.