Be Soft. Do Not Let The World Make You Hard.

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“Be soft. Do not let the world make you hard. Do not let pain make you hate. Do not let the bitterness steal your sweetness. Take pride that even though the rest of the world may disagree, you still believe it to be a beautiful place.” – Iain Thomas

Iain Thomas (1980 – present) is a South African author, poet, and speaker who is known for his thought-provoking and inspiring words. He is the author of several books, including “I Wrote This For You” and “Just Breathe,” which have become bestsellers around the world. Through his writing and speaking, he encourages people to live their lives with purpose and to find the beauty in the world around them. In 2009, he was voted one of the top 5 finalists in the world in the “Best Blogger to Follow” category on mashable.com.

One of the main themes in Iain’s work is the importance of staying true to oneself and not allowing the opinions of others to shape our perception of the world. This quote is a perfect example of this theme, as it urges us to maintain our own sense of wonder and beauty in the world, even if others disagree.

In a world where negativity and cynicism often dominate the conversation, Iain’s words serve as a refreshing reminder of the importance of staying positive and open-minded. He encourages us to not let the world harden our hearts and to not let pain and bitterness consume us. Instead, we are urged to take pride in our own unique perspective and to hold on to our sense of wonder and beauty in the world.

Iain’s work is a powerful reminder that in a world that can be harsh and unforgiving, it is important to maintain a sense of gentleness and positivity.

This quote from Thomas speaks about maintaining compassion despite painful circumstances. Tanya Singer, an expert in social neuroscience, believes that compassion is the solution to depression, burnout and narcissism. In contrast with empathy, compassion is a feeling of pity without experiencing sadness if the person is sad. She used Buddhist monks as examples of her theory. While watching a video of people suffering, their fMRI scans showed heightened activity in the brain regions responsible for caring and nurturing. Contrastingly, the similar videos caused unpleasant feelings of sadness and pain to non-meditators. She concluded that empathy should be converted to compassion in order to avoid emotional burnout without diminishing care and pity.

Commonly, people use the term “survival of the fittest” to justify getting ahead and being superior. But in reality, Darwin’s work is more appropriately described as “survival of the kindest.” In his groundbreaking works, Darwin remarked that “communities, which included the greatest number of the most sympathetic members, would flourish best, and rear the greatest number of offspring.”

Darwin found out that compassion is inherent in humans and animals. It explains why it’s an integral part of existence. To quote The Dalai Lama: “If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.”