Latest / Look Who's Talking / Cliff Jackson - Kindness

Transcript

Cliff Jackson - Kindness · Look Who's Talking

0:00
You are listening to Look Who's Talking.
0:20
This is a podcast about Head Start information.
0:24
We are focusing all our attention on Head Start parents and children.
0:30
I am Cameron Minter. I am your co-host.
0:33
And our host is the wonderful Head Start director.
0:39
Am I wonderful?
0:40
I mean, you know, the adjectives are just so many for you.
0:44
I've got to stick one per show.
0:46
The wonderful Jessica Coffey.
0:50
Hey, y'all.
0:51
What's going on, Jessica?
0:53
You know, just out here trying to enjoy life, Kim.
0:57
I understand that completely.
0:59
Trying to enjoy life.
1:00
Understanding that to the highest.
1:03
Yeah, well, right now I'm really hungry, but I'm trying to tell you that.
1:07
I'm trying to say that.
1:09
You're working on your beginning.
1:11
I'm hungry.
1:12
Yeah, yeah, you're hungry.
1:13
That I am.
1:14
No, I'm not hungry.
1:15
It's not to the point where it's hungry.
1:17
Not yet, but by the end of the show you'll see.
1:19
Just when you asked me that question, my stomach wanted to respond.
1:23
Yeah.
1:25
And I was like, ah, yeah.
1:28
Yeah, yeah.
1:29
So what's been up with you?
1:31
Just slow motion.
1:32
I'm trying to charge to the end of the year.
1:35
I realize I've been, you know, after a big season recording,
1:41
I usually take a trip for professional development.
1:45
And I didn't do it this year.
1:46
I was like, I don't feel like it, blah, blah, blah.
1:48
But then I realized I needed that.
1:51
I needed that motivation.
1:52
I needed that push, that drive.
1:55
So guess what?
1:57
I have a question.
1:58
You know what?
1:59
I think I'm starting.
2:00
I think I want to add having a poll.
2:03
Because, yeah, I like to ask questions.
2:07
Okay.
2:08
Poll.
2:09
When is it appropriate to put your Christmas tree up?
2:14
Oh, M.G.
2:16
Before Halloween, after Halloween, after Thanksgiving.
2:24
Like, what happens in your house?
2:26
Because I wanted to put my Christmas tree up like three weeks ago.
2:30
And no one did.
2:33
My Lord.
2:34
Okay.
2:35
So in my household, it has increasingly gotten earlier.
2:40
Mm-hmm.
2:41
So maybe the week of Thanksgiving, because when we have Thanksgiving,
2:47
my wife wants the house together when we have guests.
2:52
Right.
2:53
So the week of Thanksgiving is appropriate.
3:00
Now, it just depends on how far you go out.
3:03
I mean, how do you do your things?
3:05
I mean, Christmas decorating, do you go all out?
3:08
You know what?
3:09
I usually, because this would be, oh, I'm going on my second year
3:13
being in my house during Christmas.
3:15
And I think the first year, weren't you brave enough to be hosting and cooking?
3:20
No, that was Thanksgiving.
3:21
Oh, okay.
3:22
And they're coming back.
3:23
And I'm just like, my God.
3:24
Yep.
3:25
See what you started.
3:26
However, I have a Christmas tree where you assemble the pole,
3:32
put the little ruffles on the top of the pole, and then the tree falls down.
3:38
Oh.
3:39
That's my tree.
3:40
So I think I'm going to go get like a tree that you actually decorate.
3:44
Yeah.
3:45
A fake one, because I'm allergic to the real ones.
3:47
I'm with you.
3:48
Yeah.
3:49
I can't do the real one either.
3:50
Yeah, no.
3:51
But don't you have like a tall place?
3:53
I do.
3:54
How tall is your tree?
3:55
Oh, no.
3:56
Oh, yeah, you got to feel that.
3:57
The little tree was about my size.
3:59
Oh, Jessica, come on now.
4:01
If you're going to be Christmas decorating, that's like putting an elf on the shelf
4:06
and saying, I decorate for Christmas.
4:09
Come on.
4:10
Come on.
4:11
You got to put your – you got a wreath for your door.
4:15
Yeah.
4:16
I do have a wreath for my door.
4:17
And you got to change – yeah, you got to change everything.
4:19
But it's like, hmm, who's going to see this?
4:23
Well, yeah, yeah, that's important.
4:25
That means I have to host a party or something.
4:27
That means you have to do that.
4:29
Maybe I will.
4:30
Yeah.
4:31
Do you all do multiple trees?
4:34
Yes.
4:36
I don't want to talk about this because I get stressed.
4:38
I'm getting stressed.
4:39
This excites me.
4:40
I'm getting stressed.
4:41
I know.
4:42
I'm ready for Christmas.
4:43
It's not a great time for me.
4:45
It's really not.
4:46
You know, I feel like it's about the environment you create in your home.
4:51
It is.
4:52
And I love it once it's done, but getting there is the test.
4:57
Okay.
4:58
When do you all take your Christmas tree there?
5:00
See, that's the other thing.
5:03
All this work, and then, you know, January 2nd comes, you talking about you're ready to take it.
5:08
No!
5:09
I want the twinkles in the living room a little bit longer.
5:12
Yeah.
5:13
You know, but yeah.
5:14
See, yeah.
5:15
Would you like an all-year-round Christmas tree?
5:17
No.
5:18
No.
5:19
No.
5:20
I've seen people who do that.
5:22
It's not – yeah.
5:23
For Valentine's, it's like red and pink and all that.
5:26
That's a little ridiculous.
5:27
That's just –
5:28
You think?
5:29
Yeah.
5:30
Do you celebrate every holiday with decorations?
5:32
You know, guess what?
5:33
I make up holidays to celebrate.
5:34
I know.
5:35
We're going to talk about –
5:36
I make them up.
5:37
I like celebrating just anything and everything, but I really like celebrating made-up stuff.
5:43
Right.
5:44
I really do.
5:45
So this is the perfect show for you today.
5:48
Yeah.
5:49
Shut up.
5:50
Okay.
5:51
Okay.
5:52
That's a teaser.
5:53
That's a teaser.
5:54
You got to stay with the show to figure that one out.
5:57
Oh, shoot.
5:58
Before we get to what we're here to talk about, I think we need to take a coffee break.
6:07
So today's coffee break, we are talking about kindness, and it goes hand in hand with our
6:24
topic today.
6:25
Mm-hmm.
6:26
And I want you to remember, it costs nothing but means everything.
6:32
Kindness costs nothing but means everything.
6:36
Think about the time that, you know, a person was the most kind to you.
6:42
It was probably at the Chick-fil-A line.
6:45
No, they –
6:46
Because they say, my pleasure.
6:47
They do specialize.
6:48
They do specialize.
6:49
They do.
6:50
Kindness, yeah.
6:51
That's deep.
6:52
Kindness.
6:53
And because it's free.
6:54
And you know that –
6:55
Exactly.
6:56
It don't cost you nothing.
6:57
And guess what?
6:58
That's something even kids can do because you teach kids how to be kind.
7:02
Use kind words.
7:03
Use kind hands.
7:04
Be kind.
7:05
Yeah.
7:06
That's a good coffee break.
7:07
Yeah.
7:08
Jessica, coffee.
7:09
That's a great one.
7:10
So –
7:11
That was my slurp.
7:12
Yeah, I know.
7:13
We're going to have to get you another sound effect because that one's not working.
7:14
No, I'm not feeling that one at all.
7:15
But being kind is a good thing.
7:16
Yeah.
7:17
That's free.
7:29
That is free.
7:30
Yeah.
7:31
And you know what?
7:32
You'll test your limits on how kind you can be when you are upset.
7:35
You know what I'm saying?
7:37
Yeah.
7:38
Yeah.
7:39
That, like –
7:40
Yeah.
7:41
How can I still be kind but I want to not be?
7:46
You know when they say you can kill them with kindness?
7:48
Oh, yeah.
7:49
Yeah.
7:50
That's one of them times.
7:51
I just think that's being petty, though.
7:54
No.
7:55
Like –
7:56
No, because –
7:57
A part of it is.
7:58
Is it?
7:59
A part of it can be, but –
8:00
You know I'm mad at you and I'm like –
8:01
When you respond with kindness –
8:02
Thank you, Cam.
8:03
Right.
8:04
It puts it on them.
8:05
It puts them in a different way.
8:06
I guess.
8:07
Yep.
8:08
Don't be petty.
8:09
But you still mad.
8:10
Don't be petty, though.
8:11
If – so if you are being nice to someone, you're not going to be nice to them.
8:12
You're going to be nice to them.
8:13
You're going to be nice to them.
8:14
So if you are being nice to someone, even though you're mad at them, you don't feel
8:19
like that's being petty.
8:20
Because that's not really what you want to respond in.
8:25
But we check our flesh.
8:28
We keep our flesh under control.
8:32
So even though I want to respond with what you're giving me, I'm choosing to respond
8:38
with something positive that will bring a positive result out of our relationship.
8:44
Even though I want to choke you right now.
8:46
Right?
8:47
Yeah.
8:48
That's good.
8:49
Don't give what you're giving.
8:53
Give more.
8:54
That's right.
8:55
And eventually they'll feel like a heel and say, you know what, why am I so whatever?
9:01
It'll cause a self-reflection.
9:05
Anyway, you know what, kindness can be like, you can pass it on.
9:14
Pass it on.
9:16
Yes.
9:17
And today we have Cliff Jackson.
9:21
What's up, y'all?
9:23
What's up?
9:24
Jackson in the house.
9:25
What's going on?
9:26
So glad to be in the house.
9:27
It's my first time in the studio.
9:29
Thank you guys so much for having me.
9:31
Welcome.
9:32
Welcome.
9:33
He is our Community Action Council's Equity and Inclusion Officer.
9:38
Diversity, equity, and inclusion.
9:40
Yeah.
9:41
I missed one, didn't I?
9:42
Yeah, you did.
9:43
DEI.
9:44
DEI.
9:45
So we got to be on our best behavior today.
9:48
You understand?
9:50
We're usually on, we're well-behaved.
9:53
What?
9:54
Okay.
9:55
All right.
9:56
We're well-behaved, guys.
9:57
What's going on, Cliff?
9:58
Like I said, just glad to be here.
9:59
Glad to be here.
10:00
Glad to be here, glad that you guys have me on here to talk about kindness, it sounds like.
10:06
Yes, yes.
10:07
That is the topic of today's show.
10:09
We are talking about kindness, and there is another made-up holiday that's coming up soon.
10:16
Another made-up holiday.
10:17
Oh, no, I'm sorry.
10:18
I did that.
10:19
That was in my head.
10:20
I didn't mean to say that verbally.
10:21
I'm sorry.
10:22
Go ahead.
10:23
There are a lot of made-up holidays.
10:24
There are.
10:25
That's true.
10:26
There are.
10:27
But I get into them, so.
10:29
I know, you just, like I said, this show is just for you because you said you like to
10:34
celebrate them all.
10:35
Yeah, but it seems like everybody miss Auntie's Day.
10:39
Yeah, but even in your office the other day, I was like, what are all these green balloons?
10:44
And it was Boss's Day.
10:46
I was like, what?
10:47
That's a big thing.
10:48
You didn't know that?
10:49
Yeah, evidently not.
10:50
Evidently not.
10:51
So I miss some holidays.
10:52
So I know what you got your boss for Boss's Day.
10:53
Anyway, we're glad to have you on the show.
11:09
We just want to talk about, you know, probably some of the things, you know, how did you
11:14
... Okay, you're new.
11:15
You've been here for a minute now.
11:16
How long?
11:17
How long have you been here?
11:18
I've been here about a year in what?
11:20
Four months?
11:21
Oh, it seems so much longer.
11:22
Over a year.
11:23
One thing I love about you, Cliff, is you've only been here like just over a year, right?
11:29
But you're involved in everything.
11:32
I see you.
11:33
You are the one that's going to the different ways that we celebrate and you're involved
11:39
and so much so that people have asked you to host and all, you know, in such a short
11:44
time you have made your mark here at Community Action Council.
11:48
Oh yes, it's gotta be involved.
11:49
It's gotta be involved, especially when we're trying to change the community and change
11:53
lives.
11:54
You have to be involved and put your best foot forward and really speak your mind and
11:56
your respective and show kindness, you know what I mean, in everything that you do.
12:00
Absolutely.
12:01
I think you expressed that and so therefore people want you around, people request you,
12:08
people want to be in your circle and that's one of the advantages of being kind is that
12:14
it bleeds off on other people and people want that around them so kudos to you, Brian.
12:20
Thank you, thank you.
12:21
You've been here in such a short time.
12:23
Man, it feels like at least two years.
12:25
It honestly does feel a lot longer than what I've been here.
12:27
At least two years.
12:29
And that's just because of the love I've been shown and the kindness I've been shown through
12:32
the staff and just being asked to come to places and to speak at things and to host
12:36
things.
12:37
Like I said, being involved is very important to me all my life.
12:40
I've had to be involved whether it's in school, outside of school, in church, involvement
12:44
is very important so thank you.
12:47
And I think too the role that you are playing here at Community Action Council as a diversity,
12:54
equity, and inclusion officer opens our minds up to different ways that we communicate with
13:01
each other and you know appropriate and inappropriate.
13:05
I mean these are things that help us communicate and I think at least in my perspective you
13:12
put that foot forward all the time and you know you represent yourself well so just welcome
13:20
and you know where do you get that from?
13:24
Oh Lord, I would say from my parents truly.
13:27
Both my parents served in the community.
13:29
My father was he retired as Assistant Chief of Police in Lexington.
13:32
My mom currently still serves as a social worker, family service worker for Fay County
13:36
Public Schools.
13:37
So always giving back.
13:38
I've always been shown ways to exude kindness and ways to give back to the community and
13:42
I do feel as though it stems from there.
13:44
I do say I've gotten into my profession as a social worker because of my parents.
13:48
Just seeing what they do and giving back.
13:50
When I was young I would always go to different community programs that they do or put on
13:54
and just give back and I found a true joy in it.
13:57
It wasn't about you know the pay or anything that I get from it.
14:00
It was about helping others and putting a smile on somebody else's face and that always
14:03
brought me a smile back.
14:05
That's good.
14:07
So what made you come to Community Action Council?
14:11
So prior to coming to Community Action Council I was actually teaching children.
14:15
I was.
14:16
I was teaching kindergarten at the Carter G. Wilson Preparatory Academy the first year.
14:19
I taught kindergarten and I served as a special education Pira.
14:22
You're still kind.
14:23
And I'm still kind.
14:24
But what brought me here is that I still wanted to stay in the field having to do with children
14:29
and again I'm not working with kids directly day to day.
14:31
But I'm doing things to kind of help affect those kids and those families down the line
14:35
of the work that I do.
14:37
So that's what brought me to Community Action Council.
14:38
I actually applied for a different position originally and then I got asked to kind of
14:42
jump in this role as a DEA officer given that I had a background for my degree.
14:45
And I think that's important.
14:47
You know you work more with staff.
14:50
Yes.
14:51
And you know with some of the things our staff in you know have to interact with.
14:58
They are interacting with folks who aren't necessarily in kind situations.
15:05
So how important is it to for in your position to talk to staff about being kind.
15:13
It's very important.
15:14
I mean we're all different in our own ways.
15:16
And a lot of times in society where there are differences can cause conflict or just
15:22
discomfort discomfort.
15:24
But you just have to find ways to truly accept those differences and still show kindness
15:28
even if you don't understand what is who they are what's happening or what the situation
15:31
is.
15:32
It's not always always about understanding but simply just showing people kindness and
15:37
allowing them to be themselves and live them for who they are.
15:39
We're going to have to take a quick commercial break and we will be right back.
15:46
You are listening to Look Who's Talking.
15:48
We are talking with Cliff Jackson.
15:51
Stay tuned.
16:03
This past year has highlighted the strength of Community Action Council.
16:07
Every day our staff works together to help families recover from this crisis.
16:12
We're educating children at home and in person helping parents who lost their jobs and helping
16:17
households avoid eviction.
16:19
Our work at Community Action Council has never been more important than it is right now.
16:24
So why not join us?
16:25
We have employment opportunities requiring a range of skills from entry level to advance.
16:30
Apply online at commaction.org.
16:37
Community Action Council's low income home energy assistance program opens on Monday,
16:41
November 6, 2023.
16:44
Appointments can be made online beginning October 30.
16:48
Please visit our website comaction.org and select apply here under utility assistance
16:53
scheduler to make your appointment.
16:57
Households wishing to make their appointment by phone can dial 859-300-6960.
17:04
Community Action Council's prep academies have openings in their early head start program
17:24
for children aged six weeks to three years old.
17:26
Spaces are filling up so now is the time to apply for the upcoming school year.
17:30
Every child who enrolls receives a full scholarship for the entire school year.
17:34
To get connected and ensure your young child gets a head start on their education, call
17:38
Community Action Council at 859-233-4600.
17:42
You can also find Community Action Council online at comaction.org.
17:46
You are listening to Look Who's Talkin' and we are talking or speaking with Clifton Jackson,
18:13
who is the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer at Community Action Council.
18:19
So in us talking about kindness, one thing that stands out to me is random acts of kindness.
18:25
I've been in the Starbucks line and the person that says you don't have to pay.
18:31
I haven't experienced that yet.
18:34
Are you serious?
18:35
It's happened a couple times to me.
18:36
Oh yeah.
18:37
And I was happy.
18:38
It's definitely happened a few times to me.
18:39
Well, I may have happened.
18:40
I don't recall that.
18:41
I need that type of kindness in my life.
18:45
Listen, that kind of kindness is real.
18:49
But let's talk about just random acts of kindness and what that does to a person or what effect
18:56
that will have on a person.
18:58
Yeah.
18:59
I mean, like they said earlier today, it doesn't cost anything to be kind.
19:02
Whether it's paying for somebody's meal that's nice, it doesn't necessarily have to be monetary.
19:07
Just saying somebody, giving them words of encouragement throughout the day is kindness.
19:11
So, random acts of kindness, I mean, we should do them daily.
19:16
Kindness day is not just a day where we should only do kindness on that day specifically.
19:20
What are you talking about?
19:21
What are you talking about?
19:22
What are you talking about?
19:23
What are you talking about?
19:24
Well, kindness day is a day dedicated to just being kind.
19:28
I believe this year is on November 13th, if I'm not mistaken.
19:32
But like I said, kindness day should be every day.
19:34
It's not just on one day.
19:36
That's not the only day we should focus on it.
19:37
Especially, like I said, it doesn't cost to be kind.
19:40
You can be kind in many different ways, many different facets, and do that randomly.
19:43
Whether it's sticking a note on somebody's desk, that's a random act of kindness.
19:47
Whether it's knowing what their favorite candy is and giving it to them, that's a random
19:49
act of kindness.
19:50
And a lot of times, these can cause a ripple effect.
19:53
And that ripple effect just speaks to kindness spreading around.
19:55
As Jessica said, going through the drive-through, somebody may pay for your meal.
19:58
If they pay for your meal, pay for the person behind you.
20:01
Cause a ripple effect and kindness and allow it to keep going and going and going.
20:03
Yeah, that happened to me in Starbucks.
20:05
However, I was planning on paying five dollars for my drink.
20:09
Exactly.
20:10
I knew you were done.
20:11
The person in front of me paid.
20:12
So I said, oh, okay.
20:13
Let me pay for the person behind me.
20:14
And it was like $13.
20:15
I said, oh, okay.
20:16
But I paid it.
20:17
And you know what?
20:18
It made me feel good.
20:19
It made me go into the day saying, man, that made me feel good to do something for somebody
20:32
else.
20:33
It's truly rewarding.
20:34
See, for me, kindness makes me feel good.
20:37
And we talk about how other people feel, but it feels good when you're doing something
20:42
nice, or you're doing something kind.
20:46
That's something that just makes me feel good.
20:50
And so many people, you don't know what people are going through.
20:54
You don't know what's behind the door.
20:57
But just, I mean, some people may never get a compliment all day.
21:01
Right.
21:02
All day.
21:03
Or even a thank you.
21:05
Yeah.
21:06
And that can truly affect people's day.
21:08
You know what I mean?
21:09
Yeah.
21:10
I know my supervisor, sometimes she just writes a note and puts it on my desk.
21:15
I'm like, that was the nicest thing.
21:19
I am a words of affirmation person.
21:21
However, I do accept gifts.
21:25
But just someone saying, oh, you did a good job, or thank you for thinking about me, or
21:33
something like that with words.
21:35
It goes a long way.
21:36
It does.
21:37
It does.
21:38
Well, World Kindness Day, you heard it here.
21:42
November 13th.
21:44
So I want to get a little bit into being kind to yourself.
21:50
I think I'm very kind to myself.
21:53
But I probably just-
21:54
Please tell us about your child.
21:55
Delilah.
21:56
Yes.
21:57
That one.
21:58
So Delilah is my child and she's a purse.
22:02
That I say five Christmases worth of money to buy.
22:05
There you go.
22:06
There you go.
22:07
That's all right.
22:08
However, just being kind to yourself.
22:09
I feel like I have perfected being kind to myself.
22:13
Can you talk about some ways that-
22:15
Don't!
22:16
Can you talk about some ways that people can be kind to themselves?
22:21
Yeah, for sure.
22:23
I think it just goes back to really your mental health, making sure that you're touching into
22:26
that.
22:27
And just recently, Sharon talked about your emotional budget.
22:30
She talked about that.
22:31
What are you able to give?
22:33
And a lot of times if you're not able to give a lot, you need to seek yourselves.
22:36
What can I do kind for myself to put more energy back into me?
22:40
And the field of work that we do as social workers, as advocates, we're always giving
22:42
out to other people and showing kindness.
22:44
And that can burn us out at times.
22:47
So it's always important to feedback ourselves.
22:49
We may take on secondhand trauma just by the stuff we do on a day-to-day basis.
22:54
And we don't realize how that can affect us in the long run.
22:56
So it's always important to give back to yourself, whether that is seeking therapy for yourself,
23:00
going on a hike, doing something that you enjoy, finding your hobbies, and truly just
23:04
giving back to yourself and loving on yourself is very important to do.
23:09
That's real because I know specifically mothers care so much for the children, so much for
23:21
other people, and that moment to look at themselves and say, what do I need?
23:28
Where am I lacking?
23:30
How can I show myself kindness?
23:33
It feels a little guilty to even look inward to see what you need.
23:40
But in the same breath, you can't keep pouring out if nothing's being poured in.
23:45
Exactly.
23:46
If you're not good yourself, how can you really give to the people that you're serving
23:50
and the people that you're working with?
23:51
Yes, you can.
23:52
But if we're going to put our best foot forward, we have to feed ourselves first.
23:55
It starts there.
23:57
That's important.
23:58
It's important that we continue to find ways to be kind.
24:04
Tell me about a way that you, of course, we don't have to use names or anything, but that
24:10
you just showed kindness.
24:11
That was kind of different.
24:13
Towards other people?
24:14
Yes.
24:15
Well, I know you're ready to talk about how you showed it to yourself.
24:19
I have perfected this kindness to self.
24:22
I could talk all day long about that one.
24:24
We'll come back to that.
24:26
How about that one?
24:27
That's one thing that I do just within the office and not only myself, but it worked.
24:30
A lot of times we get caught up on certain things, maybe forget to miss lunch, simply
24:33
asking, hey, what do you want for lunch?
24:35
Making sure other people are okay.
24:36
That's the way of showing kindness.
24:39
Anything.
24:40
At work, a lot of times, I just simply say thank you to somebody.
24:43
Let them know how I appreciate it.
24:44
I may say it 10 times a day to that same person.
24:46
It may get annoying to them.
24:48
I don't know necessarily, but I want people to know that I'm appreciative too.
24:52
Just showing kindness in every single way that I can, whether it's asking how can I
24:56
help, how can I assist, whatever may be.
24:59
I like to just show kindness however I can help any other people.
25:02
You just said something that made me think.
25:04
You said I probably annoy people saying thank you so much.
25:09
However, I feel like now we are conditioned to not being able to accept kindness.
25:18
People go and just do and not say thank you.
25:22
Then when you hear somebody say thank you, I'm like, oh, you're welcome.
25:28
You're welcome.
25:30
That's true.
25:32
We had mentioned, I think we mentioned before the show, our favorite fast food place that
25:37
specializes.
25:40
I think this is key.
25:42
A chicken restaurant specializes in kindness or specializes in communication.
25:49
I think that's telling of what's important to them.
25:53
What you prioritize, what you find important, you will find a way to let that be hers.
26:03
That's why when you get your food and you hear it's my pleasure, it's not just a recording
26:12
or it's not just something that is very important for that company.
26:16
I find myself saying my pleasure a lot now.
26:18
Maybe it is because of Chick-fil-A. I'll say my pleasure, my pleasure, my pleasure.
26:23
It truly is my pleasure.
26:24
I understand why they say it.
26:26
Because yes, I'm serving you, but it's my pleasure to serve you.
26:29
You can't say thank you, but it's my pleasure.
26:31
I'm here for a purpose.
26:32
I'm doing what I'm doing because I want to serve others and give back to them.
26:36
That's true.
26:37
That's so true.
26:38
It is my pleasure.
26:39
I like that.
26:40
Okay.
26:41
Because you don't think about, say if I came in here and got you a Coke.
26:47
Here you go, Cameron.
26:49
But me being the giver, I get to serve him.
26:56
I get to.
26:57
I don't have to.
26:58
I get to.
26:59
That's what's key.
27:02
It's free.
27:05
It's free for you to make that decision to be kind to someone.
27:10
You never know where it ends.
27:11
You never know where it ends, but if we don't begin, then we can never figure out where
27:18
it can go.
27:20
Kindness starts at home.
27:22
It does.
27:23
It starts at home.
27:24
So you mentioned that you are the professional of showing yourself kindness.
27:29
What is, besides Delilah, what is another way that you show it?
27:33
You know what I do?
27:34
I say a daily affirmation.
27:36
Okay.
27:37
To yourself?
27:38
Absolutely.
27:39
All right.
27:40
I say a daily affirmation.
27:45
I do so much because I'm single, live by myself, ain't nobody else to talk to.
27:55
However, I think it's important that I say a daily affirmation because there are so many
28:01
times that you are your hardest critic and you can be so negative.
28:08
Not even knowing, not even being cautious about it.
28:14
That's one thing that I noticed.
28:16
Oh, I said this, and I didn't mean it to lower myself, but then I was like, oh, that's not
28:23
nice talk.
28:24
So now I say a daily affirmation to help me have positive interactions with people all
28:31
throughout the day.
28:33
We also need to have them with our children.
28:35
Oh, absolutely.
28:36
We definitely need to have it with our children.
28:39
We can remember the things that our children aggravated us about, but can we remember the
28:46
times that we responded to the things that made us proud?
28:50
It's important.
28:52
It's important.
28:53
And as we deal with Head Start families, it's important that we are affirming our children.
29:01
I started, and I'm going to say this and we can come to an end, but my grandbaby, I wanted
29:09
her to know that she was beautiful.
29:13
And I didn't want some guy later on in life being the first person to call her beautiful.
29:22
And then that meant something to her.
29:24
So from birth, I've called her beautiful.
29:28
And so even now at nine years old, I can say, hey, beautiful.
29:34
And it could be a room full of people.
29:35
And she knows I'm speaking to her.
29:39
And she'll tell you that she's beautiful.
29:42
And that's something that just brings me joy because it's affirming who she is now.
29:49
I don't want to create a monster and say, yeah, I'm beautiful.
29:54
But I want her to know that.
29:56
You don't want her to respond to a random person, hey, beautiful.
29:59
Do you know you're beautiful?
30:00
Yes, I know.
30:01
Right.
30:02
Exactly.
30:03
And that's happened.
30:04
But yeah, it's just building that confidence, building positive vibes and kindness in our
30:12
children.
30:13
I think kindness is confidence.
30:16
You can be kind to a person, but in you being kind, that is your confidence in who that
30:22
person is or serving that person or whatever the meaning is to you being kind.
30:30
That's a form for me of confidence.
30:32
Absolutely.
30:33
And I think just going back to what you said, it starts young.
30:36
It starts at a young age to teach our children kindness.
30:39
Always talk to our staff coming to the NEO when I give them the training.
30:43
I encourage our staff in the centers to teach kids at a young age inclusivity.
30:49
Nobody can tell us certain things or can train us to believe certain things.
30:52
But a child's mind is that developing stage.
30:55
They're not born of hating their heart.
30:58
It's our job to teach them how to be kind, how to include somebody.
31:01
So I always tell them if you see a child playing by themselves, be the teacher and grab another
31:05
child's hand and walk over there and show them how to be inclusive, how to show kindness.
31:08
Hey, do you want to play with me?
31:10
It starts young.
31:11
And if we start now at a young age, then our future will really change.
31:15
Well Cliff, we're so glad to have you on the show.
31:18
Thank you for having me.
31:19
We love talking with you, love what you're doing and helping us all be kind.
31:26
Be kind, y'all.
31:27
Be kind to one another.
31:28
And love yourself.
31:29
If you don't do nothing else today.
31:30
Be kind.
31:31
What did you go say, Cliff?
31:32
I said and love yourself.
31:33
That's it.
31:34
Yes.
31:35
Because I love myself, baby.
31:36
It starts with you.
31:37
I love her.
31:38
I love her.
31:39
I love her.
31:40
I love her.
31:41
I love her.
31:42
I love her.
31:43
All right.
31:44
That's the show.
31:49
We appreciate you listening.
31:50
Please share the show.
31:51
Tell your friends.
31:52
Tell your family.
31:55
You are listening to Look Who's Talking.