Kindness in the Hustle Economy

I worked in an office where everyone was constantly trying to out-hustle each other. It was exhausting. People would hoard information like it was gold and celebrate when someone else messed up because it made them look better by comparison. The 'main character energy' was off the charts, but in the worst way possible. It wasn't until I moved to a different team—one that actually practiced collaborative kindness—that I realized how much my creativity was being stifled by that toxic competition.

Kindness in the workplace isn't about being 'soft' or having no ambition. It’s about realizing that we all go further when we lift each other up. In 2025, the old school 'dog-eat-dog' mentality is finally starting to look as dated as it is. We are beginning to see that psychological safety—the feeling that you won't be punished for a mistake—is the biggest driver of innovation. When we are kind to our coworkers, we create a space where it's safe to take risks and grow.

With National Kindness Week 2026 on the horizon, I want us to think about how we can be 'work-kind.' It’s as simple as giving credit where it's due. It’s taking five minutes to explain a process to a new hire instead of letting them struggle. It’s being the person who validates someone’s idea in a meeting when they’re being talked over. These acts don't take away from your own success; they actually build your leadership aura. People remember how you made them feel long after they forget the project details.

We spend a huge chunk of our lives working. If that time is spent in a state of hyper-vigilance, it wreaks havoc on our nervous systems. Kindness is the antidote. It turns a job into a community. It makes the hard days bearable and the good days even better. You don't have to be the CEO to change the culture of your team. You just have to be the person who decides that being a human being is more important than being a productivity machine. That’s where the real winning happens.