Are You A DayMaker – Act of Kindness

Have you ever smiled at someone and you saw their face going from 🙁 to 🙂 ?
Or have you just listened to someone while he/she was upset and then suddenly you saw the person is feeling better than before?

If yes then you are a DayMaker and today I’m going to share a story of a DayMaker just like you who changed someone’s life forever.

Welcome back to the blog guys, My name is Amit Srivastav.

This is a story of a hair stylist named David Wagner. A person who performs acts of kindness with the intention of making the world a better place.

He says, it only takes a moment to make someone’s day and to become a DayMaker. Sometimes those moments even change lives as he discovered a few of years back. He was working in his salon one day when a client came in to have her hair styled. David was surprised to see her since it was right in the middle of her five-week duration between haircuts. But he thought she must have some social engagement, so asked her about her evening plans.

This lady said “I don’t have anything special going on,” “I just want to look and feel good tonight.”

He gave her a great scalp massage, then shampooed and styled her hair. During their 30 minutes together, they joked and laughed. She had a great time at the salon, she was smiling brightly and hugged him goodbye. And David went to see his next client.

The Turning Point

A few days later David received a letter from this lady.

This lady wrote that the reason she wanted her hair styled that day so it would look good for her own funeral. She had planned to commit suicide that evening. Yes, you read it right. But the wonderful time she had during the appointment had given her hope that things could get better. She decided to check herself into the hospital and get professional help and thanked David for caring, even though he had no idea what she was going through. She also wrote, “Thank You For Being There Without Knowing That You Were.“

David was shocked, he had known this lady for three years and she used to come once in a month but he had no idea that she was distressed. He was glad to have made such a difference but this incident changed his life as well. He started thinking, what if I had been upset, distracted, or hurried when she came to see him?

That experience made him take stock of himself as a stylist and as a person. He started thinking, how many of the clients he saw each day might be in a personal crisis? Even if it were only one person a day, he might have no way of knowing who needed some extra attention. So he decided to treat every person he met like he had treated this woman. It might sound like a lot of work but it wasn’t hard to have fun with the clients. It was natural and made his day brighter, too.

After this day, he decided to give care and attention to everyone he met. He thought it would make their day a little better, and who knows, it might save a life.

David still thanks this lady for the gift of this letter because it changed his life as much as his kindness changed hers.

When you realize the difference you can make for others, whether by spending a light-hearted half-hour together, giving them a smile, or simply holding the door open for them, your whole approach to life shifts.

There are a number of ways you can show kindness to someone out of the blue. Here are a few simple suggestions:

• Give a Stranger a Compliment
• Help Someone Put Groceries in Their Car
• Send Flowers to Someone for no Reason
• Give Your Favorite Book to a Friend
• Leave a Nice Note on Someone’s Car
• Pay for Someone’s Meal at a Restaurant
• Offer to Take a Photo of a Couple
• Leave a Positive Note in a Library Book
• And a very important one – Be kind to yourself!

Before I end this article, I’d like to ask you one thing.

Why should we have random acts of kindness when we can have intentional acts of goodwill?

I hope you like the story and it made you think too. If you have done anything like this which has made someone’s day, you’re a DayMaker. And I’d love to know about it. Please do share your daymaking incident in the comments and you never know, you will change the world for someone just by sharing your story.

If you like today’s story then please do share it with others. I’ll see you soon with a new story.