Received a kind note from a stranger? What's that all about?
UVM Thrive guide is on a mission to spread love and connection by giving strangers little notes of kindness in hopes the notes will be passed on throughout the UVM community.
Example “Note of Kindness”:
"Between 2009 and 2019, the percentage of teens who reported having "persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness" rose from 26 percent to 37 percent. In 2021, the figure rose to 44 percent" (Bangit, 2022). UVM is no exception to this. In his book Lost Connections, Johann Hari (2018) explains how living in the United States, an individualist society, limits our happiness and how to combat this by doing things for others.
In the United States, we value independence, self-reliance, and self-achievements. Society tells us to feel better and happier by doing it ourselves. But, this doesn't actually work. It can even make us feel worse.
Researcher Brett Ford found that those who tried to make themselves feel better only worked if they lived in a collectivist society, such as in Japan, but not in the United States, an individualistic society (Hari, 2018).
The difference between Japan and the United States was how they would make themselves feel better. In Japan, people did things for one another to make themselves feel better, such as calling a friend, focusing on how they were, and comforting them as needed. In the United States, people would feel better by doing things for themselves, such as buying something they wanted or watching a movie alone they enjoyed (Hari, 2018).
Finding a sense of connection through helping others is at our fingertips. So, if you get a note, don't be hesitant to pass it along. It will make someone's day and push the UVM community to foster a collectivist mindset. Let's switch the motto from you to us.
“Be connected to with everyone around you. Be part of the whole” (Hari, 2018, p. 195).
Want to hear more about why doing things for others will help you thrive? Click here to listen to the podcast "For Others: Little Acts of Kindness" hosted by Jenn Benati and check out our Instagram!
Talia Seidman
The UVM Thrive Guide.
By Students, For Students.
References:
Balingit, M. (2022, March 31). ‘A cry for help’: CDC warns of a steep decline in teen mental
health.
Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2022/03/31/student-mental-health-decline-cdc/
Hari, J. (2018). Lost connections: Why you’re depressed and how to find hope. Bloomsbury
Publishing.
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