All the Difference in the World by Sarah

All the Difference in the World by Sarah - February 2014 Scholarship Essay

“Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.”
-Leo Buscaglia

Many times a smile can make all the difference. Sometimes we do not recognize the value of simple acts of kindness. When someone’s day is going incredibly wrong, the smallest act of caring can make the most change in a person’s day, or week, or month, or even in their life.

I have seen this in my life many times. I work part time in a fast food restaurant, every customer I greet, I greet them with a smile and ask how their day is going. Often I will see their faces light up when they realize that at least someone cares about their day. Not only do the customers smile, but my coworkers and managers brighten up when I compliment them or even listen to their complaints. Simply smiling can brighten a person’s day.

Often, people just want someone to listen to them. Whether it is a friend or the person who sits next to you on the bus to work, those people just want you to listen. With some people, when you listen to them, they might not listen back, however, with my close friends, we listen to each other all the time. It is like the golden rule says, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” It is true, the power of simply listening to others is greatly underestimated. A listening ear holds the power to positive turnarounds in people’s lives.

Honest compliments are more sincere than simply saying, “You look pretty today.” An honest compliment is finding something unique and special about someone and mustering up the courage to tell them how special they are. Whenever I honestly compliment someone, the response is the same, appreciation, gratitude, and gratefulness. I often find that compliments are effective in sports. Such as in a cross country meet when I compliment my teammate for shaving off five seconds in the first mile, even though that race was not their best, they smile, realizing that someone noticed their seemingly small achievements.

In my own life, even the smallest acts of caring can make all the difference in my day. When my day is not going the way I thought it would, I long for a smile. I do not need people telling me, “It is going to be alright, everything will be fine.” Because I know that life is not always a piece of cake, but when life becomes difficult, that is when a smile, a kind word, even a compliment can brighten my day.

Many people do not realize that they can brighten someone’s day with just a smile. Complimenting someone’s seemingly small achievements may seem minor to you, but it can change a person’s day. Remember, a smile has the potential to make all the difference in the world.