It’s Valentine’s Day, which means many sweethearts are given a variety of gifts filled with love. But one student, in particular, took Valentine’s Day a step further.
Hayden Godfrey posted on Facebook:
“So I did a thing today,” the 17-year-old senior from Utah wrote.
“Today I passed out 900 carnations, one to every girl at SVHS and it was totally worth it. I don’t think anything can compare to seeing every girl in your life holding a flower as they walk through the halls.”
And his kind gesture was truly admired by each young lady who had been bestowed a carnation.
“Thank you so much! You are incredible!!! I will never forget what you did for every girl in the school today!!” wrote one student on Facebook.
“You’re amazing Hayden,” said another.
It began when Godfrey was a freshman at Sky View High School in Smithfield, Utah. He started passing out flowers to 30 girls anonymously. Each year the amount of flowers he distributed grew, with this year being the largest amount yet.
This past year he worked at McDonalds, a Mexican restaurant, and a grocery store so that he could successfully save the money to accomplish his task. He worked hard and it paid off, with Hayden scraping away a total of $450 to purchase the flowers.
He ordered the flowers three weeks in advance and made sure to get permission from the principal, as he enlisted the help of 20 people to help him trim the stems and pass them out.
Godfrey has a girlfriend but she is not jealous in the least bit; in fact, even she appreciates his kind gesture.
“I, myself, spent a lot of Valentine’s Days not receiving anything,” she said. “I know how it feels.
Besides, she did get concert tickets from him.
This story went viral on social media, making headlines for several reasons.
I believe that in this day where a tremendous amount of selfishness and cruelty exist among the population, people subconsciously search for stories of kindness and philanthropy.
This story temporarily satisfied our thirst for altruism, restoring a short-term faith in humanity. If only there were more. Perhaps if that was the case, we could toss out the disappointment that we’ve experienced and continue to experience on a daily basis.
There’s much that can be received from this young man who performed such a wonderful act of kindness. I thought about adversity in the workplace. As an NYC employment law attorney, I wondered “What if we took the time to theoretically give out carnations instead of negativity?”
Would we have the ability to do away with sexual harassment and discrimination altogether?
Here are three lessons that every workplace individual could learn from this gracious young man who set aside motives for himself in pursuance of satisfying the desire of others:
Instead of offensive remarks and harassment, keep kindness in your heart; disperse bouquets of praise to your others when the situation calls for it.
While 900 flowers may not solve world problems, it certainly will add a bit of positivity to the atmosphere. Instead of flowers, however, why not make room for encouraging others so that ideas and creativity can blossom allowing success and prosperity to come to fruition?
The saying “One good turn deserves another” means one act of kindness is properly met with another act. If we follow those rules in the workplace, then certainly we can inherently receive the goodness we put forth. It will not take 900 flowers or even a dozen; just a simple act of treating someone with respect and being inclined to embrace reciprocal acts in return.
If employers and others within the workplace were to follow these effortless rules, it would be awe-inspiring, to say the least. It’s not likely however that everyone would be willing to spread goodness and cheer and always be kind to one another; it’s just not realistic.
However, one thing is for sure and that is, there are certain workplace ethics that every individual in the workplace has the legal responsibility to adhere to. Not doing so, is a violation of the law and will surely result in being penalized.
I’m speaking of sexual harassment and discrimination.
Are you or someone you know being subjected to a hostile work environment, one where sexual harassment or discrimination exists?
If you are, you need to know that both sexual harassment and discrimination are against the law.
Say no to a hostile work environment. Say no to being a victim of discrimination or sexual harassment. Our experienced employment law attorneys are ready to fight for you and protect your rights. Our goal is to get the best possible results in your situation.
It’s important that you should remember in any circumstance at your job if it feels uncomfortable to you, affects your job performance or is causing you mental distress, you need to seek the professional advice of an NYC sexual harassment and employment law attorney. Call us at 800-807-2209 for a free consultation to discuss your possible claim.
