These words will help you make it a practice not just to think about kindness, but to practice it year-round

The new year is almost upon us. And while there's still a lot of uncertainty swirling about, the way forward is not anxious action or anger, but kindness, compassion, and understanding.

There are many inspiring quotes to lean on that can remind us of this as we dive headlong into the future, but here are my favorites at the moment -- I recommend reflecting on them as prepare for 2022.

1. "Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible." -- The Dalai Lama

2. "Unexpected kindness is the most powerful, least costly, and most underrated agent of human change." -- Bob Kerrey

3. "Kindness begins with the understanding that we all struggle." -- Charles Glassman

4. "There is no such thing as a small act of kindness. Every act creates a ripple with no logical end." -- Scott Adams

5. "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

6. "Do things for people not because of who they are or what they do in return, but because of who you are." -- Harold S. Kushner

7. "Compassion bring us to a stop, and for a moment we rise about ourselves." -- Mason Cooley

8. "If compassion does not include yourself, it is incomplete." -- Jack Kornfield

9. "To the world you may be one person, but to one person you may be the world." -- Dr. Seuss

10. "Learning to stand in somebody else's shoes, to see through their eyes, that's how peace begins." -- Barack Obama

If you're anything like me, a momentary reflection on these is not enough. So, I put them in places where I work and go about my day -- small reminders of what it means to live compassionately, even when days are tough.

Put a sticky note on your computer screen, a few quotes on your refrigerator, a sign above your office. Make it a practice not just to think about kindness, but to practice it year-round. That's how we'll get through the tough times.

Inc