💌 Doing The Little Things Matter
Sunday Scoop #20 - We all love to say that we appreciate those around us, but how often do we bother to show it? This week, I explore what holds us back from doing little things for others.
Hey friends,
For the past week or so, I’ve been thinking a lot about showing appreciation for others. Here are my thoughts.
We all acutely aware that we'd love to feel appreciated, but why is there such a friction when it comes to doing so for others?
Have you ever realized that when we wish our friends on their birthdays (or vice versa), we always go back to the default "Appreciate you more than I show you, dude" and the classic "I don’t say this enough but…….".
At least for me, I’ve always felt pangs of regrets when I have to resort to these repetitive birthday wishes. I might as well have gone ahead and tell the other person that their presence in my life has been impactful enough for me to acknowledge it, but not quite so for me to actually appreciate them.
Then, I came across this video by Khe Hy, the founder of RadReads (a Notion/ productivity blog, of course).
In this video, Khe talked about an object that’s less than a square inch and costs under 60 cents at your local post office. He then goes ahead to explain how a stamp, an envelope and a heart-felt handwritten letter would go a long way to make the recipient feel appreciated as compared to an email, even if the content is exactly the same.
In fact, when I think about it, the bar has been set so low for us. With the advancement of technology, it offers us the path of least resistance and hence many of us resort to easier and easier methods to show our appreciation.
Hence, the effort it takes to 'go the extra mile' for others is, in reality, not that hard to exert.
Even you were to receive a handwritten letter in the mail today from your best friend, or a Domino’s delivery from your siblings working outstation, it would’ve most probably made your day, wouldn’t it? It takes barely an hour to do either one of those appreciation gestures and combined, they may well cost less than 50 bucks.
You don't have to head to the post office and the local bookstore to do a full scale stamps and envelope haul. You don't even have to order a pizza. Do something that's meaningful and specific for the both of you.
And this is hopefully a smooth transition for me to introduce one of my friend's business - Ace.creamm illustrations.
During the 1st pandemic lockdown, Ace started a side business of illustrating portraits for others. Since then, he has drawn portraits for close to 100 customers and he does so for a pretty affordable price as well!
The best thing is that he has agreed to give an exclusive offer to all my readers who wish to order an illustrated portrait. If you are ordering between 30.11.2020 to 31.12.2020, just use my code: JIASHING15 at checkout and get a 15% off any artwork!
Order through his Instagram page by clicking on the button below!
Take the opportunity this Christmas to show your loved ones how much you appreciate them. Browse through the collection of photos you may have together, choose a particularly unique one and get your order underway!
With that said, I hope that this little reminder - to show your appreciation instead of merely saying so - would add some value to your life in some shape, way, or form.
Have a great week ahead and see you in the next issue of Sunday Scoop!
Jia Shing.
Links
Here is an excerpt from my most highlighted book of all time - Steal Like An Artist by Austin Kleon that I think fits quite nicely into this week’s issue.
As a young man, Bill Clinton began a collection of note cards upon which he would write names and phone numbers of friends and acquaintances who might be of service when he eventually entered politics. Each night, before he ever had a reason to, he would flip through the box, make phone calls, write letters, or add notations about their interactions. Over the years, this collection grew - to ten thousand cards (before it was eventually digitized). It’s what put him in the Oval Office and continues to return dividends.
Here is an article that I wrote a couple months ago about doing good. To be honest, this article performed way better than I expected and I’m hoping it brought value to those who read it because admittedly, it was quite a lengthy read. If you fancy a good read to kick off the holidays, why not give it a go and let me know what you think?
Question
When was the last time you showed appreciation to those you truly appreciate?
Tweet of the Week
The strongest people I know are those who can find it in themselves to be kind even when it's hard, even when it comes at their cost, and especially when it's unwarranted.Enjoyed this issue?
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