In our fast-paced world where everyone is looking for what to get and what to receive rather than giving, which is more blessed to do, genuine concern has become a scarce commodity. It has become very scarce that we often second guess and doubt people who show us concern whether genuine or otherwise.
Why should we have to doubt people who show us concern in the first instance? The answer is still rooted in the first line, genuine people are scarce. You require financial help, only to get into the hands of fraudsters who will offer some sorts of help and concern before swinging into action, you’re heartbroken and needs healing only to find out that people who are there showing concern only do because they have their eyes at something else. Allthis and many more have made a lot of people concluded that “all men are the same” in character.
I read the story of a woman who was conned of thousands of dollars by a romance fraudster. According to the woman she just “wanted to be loved” after having gone through a series of emotional traumas, but she wasn’t spared by someone who was showing concern that was not genuine.
Despite many records of people showing concern only to find in the end that their concern is not genuine but only for what they could get in the end. There are still many people all over the world who are daily showing genuine concern.
Why Do You Need It?
The desire to feel loved and cared for is well-rooted in human nature, every human wants to be loved and cared for genuinely. Even while many people might not publicly acknowledge their need for been cared for, the desire is always there, as humans we are not self-sufficient on our own. The desire for affection in humans is unique in the sense that we are a social species that require a certain degree of contact with other human beings. The concern is more than just an emotion; it can be considered by some as a requirement in healthy living.
In the book Buttercup: The Butterfly That Would Not Fly, the author explained with illustration the need to genuinely care for people around us and how our concern for them could help them realize their potential and propel them to overcome challenges that they thought were insurmountable.
There may be many who might not be comfortable with our show of concern at first, there will always be people who will ask us “Why are you so concerned about me?” We shouldn’t be put off by such people, it’s a sign they need more concern and care genuinely.
HOW TO SHOW GENUINE CONCERN
Time Simone Weil will say “Attention is the rarest and purest form of generosity.” This can’t be truer. To show genuine concern requires being attentive to people who need our help, regardless of how childish they might behave. Sometimes people who need our concern are annoyingly childish, but we can’t claim we show genuine concern if we can’t look beyond their fears and insecurities and help them out.
In my book Buttercup: The Butterfly That Would Not Fly, I made several illustrations and explanations about Buttercup, his fears, and insecurities, and how he was helped out of the situation by people who showed him genuine concern and heard him out even when it wasn't comfortable for them either. It doesn’t take much to make someone feel you genuinely care about them. You just need to be a little sensitive and make a conscious effort to go beyond the superficial and let your actions speak louder than words.
Be There When They Need You It is important to make people feel secure especially once they are upset, have faced failure, or experienced hardships in life. Be there for them during this moment because this is often the time, they need you the foremost. Comfort them, reassure them, and offer your unconditional support. It can make an enormous difference in their life and can give them the strength to recover from the setbacks.
Help Them Solve Their Problems and Resolve Issues Everyone has a problem they’re battling with; some are visible for all to see while some are not. They're silent battles being fought daily, and while some people are vocal in calling for help when they need it, many people are 'dying’ in silence and need our genuine concern. Some people are even calling for help, but the noise in our world today has silenced their voice, hence the need to draw closer to people and genuinely offer help.
The book Buttercup: The Butterfly That would not fly is a study in how encouragement and emotional support can move someone closer to from a state of mere existence toward a life he or she was created to live, In the case of Buttercup, it was its purpose to fly!