Words Matter – Oliver Wright
I’ve recently started a new job. It’s a great job. My team are amazing, and I’m part of a company where values align. It’s such a change from what I’ve been used to.
I’ll regularly work in the London office, which is new for me, involving a train from my home in Sheffield. (It’s much quicker and easier than I imagined, and I’m even enjoying the early starts on those days.) One of the joys of visiting the station in Sheffield is the poems on buildings. They are literally what they say – massive building-sized poems on the side of key buildings within the city. They always make me think, especially the one near the station.
I’m fortunate to live in Sheffield. A city where words matter.
Certain lines leap out at me every time I’m sat, enjoying the first rays of sunlight and a view of Park Hill and the cholera monument. All of which makes me think.
Our Sheffield is kindness…
It is everything
, and all of us
It’s you; it’s poetry on walls
It matters. Words matter.
It’s an inspirational call.
In my new job, I’m working with words. I’ve analysed, agonised over, edited, and re-edited words as part of my induction. The key learning from this has been that words matter.
Words aren’t simply static, however. Words lead to action. Kind words lead to kind actions.
It’s made me think. Meeting new people has given me so many opportunities to show kindness. Yet the kindness I’ve received has far outweighed anything I’ve been able to give. We have an opportunity with our words. Often, it’s the simplest and easiest way to show kindness, and it grows. A quick hello, a simple How are you, a brief sharing of something can really brighten someone’s day. Once done, it’s easier to do it again or maybe extend it to a brief conversation. A brief conversation can grow into something more. Kindness spreads like that.
What has struck me through these little but growing moments of kindness is that they always start with a choice. A decision to show kindness.
That’s a decision all of us can make. It does matter. It does make a difference. At times, it has changed my mood, outlook, and the whole day.
What will you choose to say today?
Whose day will you lift with your kind words?
Oliver Wright
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