Kind Characters
By Andrea Houchard
We often think of creating a character in a fictional context. But we also create characters in the real world. In fact, we create our own. We have significant authorial control over our own character. It is also very likely that we shape and influence the character of those around us. SedonaKind can be understood as a platform for character creation. This platform holds kindness up for consideration as we think about who we want to be, and maybe even who we want to help others become.
When it comes to creating a character, habits are extremely important. Just think of the people you know best—or maybe even people you don’t know all that well. Are their responses reliable? Do you have a pretty good idea of how they are going to react? It is often easy to get to know people, because they usually have reliable behavioral habits. Most people have a practice of responding to the world around them. That’s because habits are, well, habit-forming, and they usually start at a very young age. This is why Aristotle said that when it comes to the habits that children form, it makes no small difference, but rather all the difference. SedonaKind’s Kindness in the Schools program has created an opportunity for young people in Sedona to self-consciously cultivate kind habits of character. This has the potential to have a significant impact on how these young people respond to others and the world around them throughout their lives.
Habits of moral character are more than repetitive behavioral patterns, however. Moral habits are skills. Kindness is often considered a way of acting, but it might be better understood as a skillful way of responding to the world. In challenging situations, it takes a sort of habituated skill to respond with genuine kindness. And genuine kindness is more than a staged way of acting. Genuine kindness is accompanied by a feeling of love and tenderness, every bit as much as it is constituted by some act or other. So habits of feeling and acting can be considered skills that are essential to cultivating a kind character.
First I claimed kindness was an act of self-conscious authorship. Then I claimed it was a skillful habit, or practice. These may seem to be at odds with each other, but they are actually complementary. Any reflective person self-consciously makes decisions about how they want to be in the world, then sets about cultivating the skills to foster that mode of being. Reflection and practice are both necessary to create a character of kindness. Together they demonstrate a thoughtful commitment to having a kind character, along with the day-to-day follow through that makes kindness a part of your very constitution. SedonaKind has created a beautiful platform to remind us of the joy and importance of creating a character of kindness—especially now.
When it comes to creating a character, habits are extremely important. Just think of the people you know best—or maybe even people you don’t know all that well. Are their responses reliable? Do you have a pretty good idea of how they are going to react? It is often easy to get to know people, because they usually have reliable behavioral habits. Most people have a practice of responding to the world around them. That’s because habits are, well, habit-forming, and they usually start at a very young age. This is why Aristotle said that when it comes to the habits that children form, it makes no small difference, but rather all the difference. SedonaKind’s Kindness in the Schools program has created an opportunity for young people in Sedona to self-consciously cultivate kind habits of character. This has the potential to have a significant impact on how these young people respond to others and the world around them throughout their lives.
Habits of moral character are more than repetitive behavioral patterns, however. Moral habits are skills. Kindness is often considered a way of acting, but it might be better understood as a skillful way of responding to the world. In challenging situations, it takes a sort of habituated skill to respond with genuine kindness. And genuine kindness is more than a staged way of acting. Genuine kindness is accompanied by a feeling of love and tenderness, every bit as much as it is constituted by some act or other. So habits of feeling and acting can be considered skills that are essential to cultivating a kind character.
First I claimed kindness was an act of self-conscious authorship. Then I claimed it was a skillful habit, or practice. These may seem to be at odds with each other, but they are actually complementary. Any reflective person self-consciously makes decisions about how they want to be in the world, then sets about cultivating the skills to foster that mode of being. Reflection and practice are both necessary to create a character of kindness. Together they demonstrate a thoughtful commitment to having a kind character, along with the day-to-day follow through that makes kindness a part of your very constitution. SedonaKind has created a beautiful platform to remind us of the joy and importance of creating a character of kindness—especially now.