It’s Nice to be Nice
Nice is underrated. It get’s lumped in with a sort of pleasant mediocrity in social interactions: ‘nice shoes’, ‘nice hair’, ‘nice nails’ . It’s a bit of a bimbo in the adjective stakes, seen as a lightweight, it can be used in myriad interactions.
Personally, I think niceness is the oil that greases our relationships - universal lube extraordinaire. The pleasantries of life are not to be dismissed: a nod, a smile, holding the door open for someone, complimenting someone and innumerable other niceties - these are all things which make our day-to-day lives that bit more agreeable.
I enjoy being nice to people, not because I’m a sycophant, but because it’s a positive exchange in a sometimes very negative world. Within the halls of social media apps in particular, there’s a lot of unpleasantness - people say things I’m sure they wouldn’t say to people’s faces - and a bit of niceness goes a long way. I’ve been buoyed by the simple act of someone wishing me a pleasant day, encouraged by someone’s congratulations. I genuinely feel more positive when I’m being nice and I think it encourages people to reciprocate. In a world often perceived to be dominated by hate, discrimination and violence, it matters.
Some people feel awkward with niceness, as if it will infect their bad-ass persona. Nice is definitely not the cool kid on the block and nice people can be disparaged or even bullied. We encourage young children to be nice - ‘play nicely’, ‘be nice to your sister/brother’ - then seem to drop the concept in adolescence and beyond. We graduate to higher concepts like love. Love is all very well, however, without being underpinned by the respect that allows us to be nice to people, it becomes somewhat hollow. Couples that screech at each other, are rude, or simply fail to transact common courtesies, could do with a bit more ‘nice guy’ in their relationships.
Kindness has become big business with lifestyle gurus over recent years. Be kind to yourself we’re told; practice kindness to others. I brook no argument with this idea at all. Kindness is niceness’s big brother. A nice person will go on to be a kind person too!
Nice isn’t the beige bleurgh we often associate with the word. Nice people are pleasant and friendly and may even delight! Embrace your nice side. Michael Rosen has gained popularity as the ‘meme guy’ as a result of the way he says nice (noice) Check out the videos. He’s often asked to say it when people see him on the street and is happy to oblige. Being nice can make people smile and that’s a pretty neat trick.
Don’t be that person that despises niceness. It makes the world go round as much as money (perhaps more than) is as laudable as love and builds the foundations for our social interactions. Seriously. It’s nice to be nice. Give it a try!
Totally agree. Cup half full is always a better approach for ourselves as it affects how we react with others and keeps our mind positive. Yes, nice is good.
I think it's easy to be either nice/kind to yourself (having boundaries) OR others. The trick in life is finding a way to be both. If you can do that, you're a true bad-ass, in a good way.