Welcome to The Kindness Continuum! This blog will explore the concept of kindness and its place in our lives, the lives of those around us, and in the world. The site will be a place to share inspiring stories, offer tools to guide our way in the world, and explore the evidence and research that will help us understand the importance of kindness and its place in our lives. I invite you to stay tuned and come along for the ride as I roll out this blog and examine this important topic.
My name is Susan Lebold, and my career and life experience have led me to this blog. As a lawyer, I practiced law for fifteen years in various states, countries and jurisdictions. From Ohio, to Germany, to North Carolina, to Pennsylvania, I tended to represent adults and children who didn’t always make the best decisions for themselves. Parents who didn’t know how to be parents. Kids who tested the limits of authority and the law. Soldiers who reneged on their responsibility to keep us safe. I also represented adults and children who had suffered at the hands of brutal parents or partners, or were victims of companies that took advantage of their customers, or powerless individuals who suffered in court systems that did not always mete out fair and just results. Many of my clients were poor and disadvantaged in various ways, with the cards stacked against them before they ever entered a courtroom. In every case my client, no matter who they were or what they had done, desperately needed someone willing to care about them, respect their personal dignity, and guide them through our complicated legal system. That person was me.
My experience as a lawyer taught me the importance of looking at the big picture, as well as the futility of pursuing system change one court case at a time. I went back to school and got my degree in social work, focusing on community level change and policy advocacy. My social work career has made it possible for me to work on the societal and governmental changes that I believe are needed. I am convinced that achieving big change requires strong collaboration between communities and organizations. From mediation with individuals to consulting at the state and community level, to teaching the next generation of social workers, to promoting ethical community practice at the national level, I have found the last fifteen years of my career to be the most fulfilling and satisfying of my life.
Throughout this journey, I have witnessed first hand many instances of kindness, small and large, and the resulting positive outcomes. I have come to appreciate how kindness can impact the world, and how it can impact us as individuals. I have also witnessed many examples on the other end of the Kindness Continuum, and realize how the absence of kindness is toxic to our existence on this planet, and to the relationships that hold us together as human beings.
I invite you to join with me to discover where you are and where you want to be on the Kindness Continuum!