Karma is a wonderful thing. I don’t believe it’s the universe rewarding good deeds with more good stuff. But I very much believe that you get what you give and it’s other people that give it back.

No one is perfect. Anyone that claims they are is wrong. No matter how wonderful I think my friends are, they’re not perfect. I’m far from it myself. Even Mary Poppins wasn’t perfect. Practically perfect but not perfect. It’s difficult to be perfect. Even the pursuit of perfection is hard and ultimately fruitless. But it’s easy to not be an arse. And when you’re not an arse, people will be nicer to you and opportunities will be easier to come by.

So here are my five top tips for Karma.

1. Be Genuine

When people can see that you’re genuinely trying to help they will appreciate it more. It’s so so obvious when you’re doing good things just to be praised. It’s cringeworthy to see people doing stuff and patting themselves on the back. If you’re going to help someone, make sure you want to do it. Half arsed help could potentially do more damage than good.

2. Be Humble

Following on nicely from being genuine, be humble. There’s literally nothing worse than people patting themselves on the back and thinking they’re hot shit because they shared a link on Facebook about some poorly sourced information that sounds like it should be true and progressive. Bill and Melinda Gates (along with tons of other people) helped to virtually eradicate polio. How often do you hear them going to talks and saying “Yeah, I basically eradicated polio, no biggie.”? You don’t. Humble is good. Humble brags aren’t.

3. Don’t Promise More Than You Can Do

Doing good is wonderful. Promising to do good is also good as long as you can do it. If you’re a graphic designer with no other talents, do not offer to build a wall in someones garden. If you can’t do something, don’t do it. I’m not saying just walk away and leave it at that. You can still support that person to find the help they need.

4. Take The Opportunity To Be Kind

If you see someone in need of support, offer that support. Simple really. If they accept your help, you’ll be able to do some good for someone. If they say no, wish them well and leave them to it. The gesture will have been appreciated. Sometimes you don’t even see that someone needs help. There is always an opportunity to be kind. Always.

5. Enjoy Being Kind

You should enjoy being kind to others. It’s a wonderful feeling for you and it’s a fantastic feeling for others. As mentioned in my post absolutely years ago, you can’t be selfless all the time. It’s okay to be selfish sometimes and it’s okay to enjoy what you do, even if it’s meant to be a selfless act. Also, the more you enjoy what you do, the more you’ll do it and in turn, the more people will want to be kind to you.

If you follow these top 5 tips to Karma, if you’re kind, genuine and humble, Karma and the people around you will be kind to you.

What are your top tips to make the most of the swings and roundabouts? 🙂

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