A study published in a recent online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences provides the first laboratory evidence of something many of us have known all along: acts of kindness are contagious.  According to the article, when people experience acts of kindness, they “pay it forward” by being kind to others.  This creates a cascade of kind acts which influences the behavior of dozens of others.  The bad news is that the study also found that unkind acts are also contagious.  People in leadership, supervisory or managerial positions can capitalize on these findings by making sure they perform acts of kindness–simple things like saying or doing things that brighten people’s days–throughout the day, but especially first thing in the morning.  This will ensure a very positive, energetic and productive workforce as people pay forward those acts of kindness.  On the other hand, if all this is left to chance, unkind acts can set the tone for the day.  People receiving and passing on unkind acts are not nearly as productive as those who are involved with acts of kindness.  I think it would really benefit most companies if they established an active kindness committee that provided employees with something to pay forward every day.