Many of us confuse politeness and kindness when it comes to sharing helpful feedback with our work colleagues, friends, and teammates. For instance, you might have a work colleague with bad breath or body odor issues that could negatively affect their interactions with others, but you hesitate to bring it up for fear of offending them. In this situation, you are confusing politeness with kindness.
When we are polite, we avoid giving feedback that might hurt someone’s feelings in the short term.
The more decent thing to do would be candid about how the other person can improve. Kindness is about taking action to help someone get better. It is possible to be direct in what you say while being thoughtful about how you deliver the message.
“I’m sorry to bring this up, but I think it’s important that you’re aware of your body odor to make a better impression on others. I know it might be uncomfortable to hear, but I believe it will ultimately help you create a more positive impact.”
If we want to help others and truly make a positive difference, being kind is better than being polite. Being Kind is an act of goodness.