The mindful art of consideration: Small acts, big impact

In this month’s translation industry updates we’ll be focusing on a topic which is probably close to a lot of our hearts: how to be more considerate of other people. 

While very few of us would consider ourselves to be deliberately selfish people, for various reasons we can all find ourselves falling short of being mindful of the needs of people around us. Below we’ll be sharing some tips on how to be more thoughtful in our interactions with others.

Practise active listening 

Effective listening is a deceptively hard skill to master. While most of us would like to think we're good listeners, in practice we're often guilty of starting to compose a response in our head while the other person is still talking, or even interrupting them. A good tip is to try to give a person space to finish their line of thought and to fully consider everything they've said before responding. 

Where possible, try to support rather than supplant what people are saying. For example, if somebody tells you they've been on holiday, try to ask them follow-up questions rather than immediately telling them that you've been to the same destination.

Be aware that other people might be struggling in ways we're not aware of

For many different reasons, people aren't necessarily always open about the difficulties that they're facing, and that's completely understandable. People’s personal challenges in life can range from financial difficulties to relationship issues to struggling to conceive a child, as well any number of physical or mental health challenges that we might not be aware of. Often it's the people who are seemingly the most collected who have the most going on under the surface, and while it's not necessarily always appropriate to pry, it is worth remembering that other people are facing similar challenges to ours and being mindful of this when interacting with them.

On a similar note, try to be understanding and non-judgmental of other people, while maintaining your own personal boundaries and listening to your instincts on whether a person is ultimately trustworthy or not. Being open-minded and uncritical of other people is often far easier said than done, but some tips that might help include being mindful of which situations make you feel most critical and trying to counter each judgmental thought with a more positive one where possible.

Try to be inclusive of everyone 

Mixed group scenarios can often be a social minefield, but if you're ever in a situation where you're with various different people you don't know well, or some that you know better than others, try to make a conscious effort to address and make eye contact with everyone, and try to run with conversational topics that everyone can take part in. Regardless of whom you're talking to, try to display open body language by the standards of your culture and let people know that they have your full attention, and try to keep your phone away wherever possible.

Try to focus on the good in other people, even when it's challenging 

A sad fact of life is that other people's adverse reactions tend to stay with us more than their good deeds, which can sometimes leave us feeling cynical and less able to see the good in others. In turn, this can make us more selfish in our own behaviour. While nobody has the patience of a saint and it's not necessarily always a good idea to be trusting of people in all situations, try to remember times when people went out of their way to help you and use this to maintain your faith in other people when times are more challenging.

Another way of staying optimistic about humanity is by trying to pay good deeds forward when possible. In life we often receive favours from people without having an obvious way of returning them back to the person who helped us, but a good way of spreading the goodwill is by paying the favour forward to another person who may be in need of our assistance in a different way. 

Be understanding and forgiving of yourself 

Unless we care for ourselves, it's difficult to care for other people, so it's important for each of us to look after our own physical and mental health so that we can better support other people around us. It's also important to understand that we are all only human. Even when we have the best intentions in the world we can still end up snapping at people. If you find yourself acting in ways that you feel are beneath you, take a deep breath, try to step back from the situation, and resolve to handle things differently the next time if possible.

Try not to take other people for granted

We often forget to feel or voice appreciation for the people close to us, either because we're so familiar with them and see them so often, or because there's a sense of expectation that they’ll always be there for us, as can be the case in a parent-child relationship. Where possible, try to take time to appreciate the important people in your life and thank them for what they do. 

It's also a good idea for us to be mindful of the contributions of people who are perhaps more emotionally distanced from us but still part of our everyday lives, such as work colleagues and everyone else that we’re in contact with frequently. Even a smile and a friendly word to the person making your coffee in the morning can sometimes make both of your days better.

And with this we conclude our tips on being more thoughtful of other people, but if you have any other ideas then we'd love to hear them, so please don’t hesitate to leave your tips on consideration in the comments. 

Stay mindful, and see you again for next month's updates! 

Sources

Calm.com 

How to be more mindful: 6 daily practices to improve awareness

https://www.calm.com/blog/how-to-be-more-mindful 

Glamour | Anna Borges

How to be a little less judgmental, according to an expert

https://www.glamourmagazine.co.uk/article/how-to-be-less-judgemental 

HelpGuide.org | Sheldon Reid

Active Listening Tips for Improved Communication

https://www.helpguide.org/relationships/communication/active-listening 

HelpGuide.org | Sheldon Reid

Empathy: How to Feel and Respond to the Emotions of Others

https://www.helpguide.org/relationships/communication/empathy