What If NDG Became a Neighbourhood That Celebrated People While They Are Here?

 

We are very good at saying wonderful things about people when they retire, move away, win an award—or when it is too late for them to hear us.

But what if we didn't wait?

What if part of transforming NDG was creating a culture of everyday appreciation?

There are people all around us quietly making this neighbourhood better.

The crossing guard who watches over our children.

The cashier who remembers our name.

The superintendent who fixes something at 9 o'clock at night.

The bus driver who waits an extra few seconds for someone running toward the stop.

The teacher who sees potential in a struggling child.

The person who keeps the sidewalk outside their building beautiful.

The neighbour who carries someone's groceries.

The merchant who has served the community for thirty years.

The teenager who gives up a seat for an older person.

The person who picks up a piece of garbage that wasn't theirs.

Most of these people will never receive an award.

Perhaps they don't need one.

But everybody needs, occasionally, to hear:

“I notice what you do.”

Imagine if that became an NDG habit.

Imagine walking into your favourite store and saying to the person behind the counter:

“I just want you to know that I appreciate how friendly you always are.”

Imagine slipping a handwritten note under a neighbour's door:

“Thank you for being such a wonderful neighbour.”

Imagine children being encouraged to thank the crossing guard.

Residents thanking the person who cleans their building.

Customers telling a small-business owner, “NDG is better because you're here.”

Something happens when people feel appreciated.

They stand a little taller.

They smile.

They often become even more generous.

And perhaps most importantly, they discover that their contribution—however small it may seem—matters to somebody else.

I would love to see us create an informal tradition throughout NDG that might be called:

I SEE YOU.

No organization required.

No membership.

No money.

Simply catch somebody doing something good—and tell them.

Not someday.

Today.

We could even occasionally leave little handwritten cards around the neighbourhood:

I SAW WHAT YOU DID.

THANK YOU FOR CARING.

YOU MAKE NDG BETTER.

Think how different our community might feel if appreciation became contagious.

Instead of noticing only what is wrong, we would train ourselves to notice what is right.

Instead of asking only what NDG needs to improve, we would begin recognizing the thousands of people who are already improving it every day.

And those people are everywhere.

So today's challenge is this:

Catch one person making NDG better.

Then tell them.

Look them in the eye.

Say their name if you know it.

And give them perhaps eight words they may remember for a very long time:

“I see what you do. Thank you for it.”

That's all.

But imagine those words being spoken hundreds of times today.

Then thousands of times this month.

We would be creating something extraordinarily valuable:

A neighbourhood in which goodness gets noticed.

Because building A NuVo World isn't only about inspiring people to do more good.

Sometimes it is about recognizing the people who already are.

Let's become a community that gives people their flowers while they are here to enjoy them.

I see you.

I appreciate you.

You matter.

And NDG is better because you're here.

A NuVo World — creating a NuVo, better world one day, one person and one heartfelt thank-you at a time.