Do not just be the person who thanks the teacher on the way out of class. Do not just be the person who smiles at the quiet kid in the halls. Do not just be the person who picks up their own trash. Anyone can be nice, but very few people can be truly kind. People think being nice and being kind are the same thing, but through self experimentation, I’m here to say this is mixed up too often. 

First of all, you can do so much more than being polite or being nice. Not only can you be the person who makes someone smile everyday, you can be the person who truly impacts someone through kindness and makes that person want to be kind to others too. Someone who is kind-hearted would not only do things to make someone’s day better, but they would do it without being told to and without expecting recognition. Sometimes it feels good to be told that you are a nice person or to get rewarded in some sort of way, but to do something with true kind-hearted intentions means you do so without calling attention to it or expecting something in return. Go out of your way to get food for a friend without expecting them to pay you back or write a personalized note to someone who is having a bad week.

However, many people will still say that nice and kind mean the same thing. People with these qualities do some of the same things, which is true to a certain degree. However, being kind means so much more and is so much deeper than being nice. Sadly, it is much harder to find in people. On that note, be brave and have courage to not just be nice, but to be kind. Be the person that truly shows gratitude to the teacher and asks them how they are doing today, the one that has a conversation with them. It may help them get through a tough day. Be the person who genuinely shows kindness to the quiet kid and makes them laugh and feel included on a regular basis. It may make them feel loved for the first time in awhile. Be the person who not only picks up their trash, but other people’s trash too. You might help the janitor get home a little bit earlier. Be the person whose heart goes deeper than nice.