Peace on Earth, Goodwill Towards All: A Humanist Vision for an Ethical Life

During the holiday season, the familiar refrain of "peace on earth, goodwill towards all" echoes in songs, stories, and celebrations around the world. While its origins lie in religious traditions, its message transcends belief systems and offers a profound organizing principle for living an ethical, human-centered life. For Humanists, this ideal isn’t just a seasonal sentiment but a year-round life stance: to strive for peace through actions grounded in reason, empathy, and a commitment to the common good.

Peace: More Than the Absence of Conflict

When we speak of peace, we often think of it as the absence of war or violence. But peace is much more than that—it is the presence of conditions that allow individuals and communities to thrive. For Humanists, achieving peace means working towards justice, fairness, and equity. It means creating systems that ensure no one is left behind and dismantling structures that perpetuate harm.

Peace starts with our relationships—how we treat others in our families, workplaces, and communities. Do we seek to understand and resolve disagreements through dialogue? Are we willing to confront our biases and approach conflicts with compassion rather than aggression? Building peace requires courage—the courage to act as mediators, to de-escalate tensions, and to practice nonviolence as a way of life.

As the late Humanist philosopher Bertrand Russell said, "War does not determine who is right—only who is left." The Humanist commitment to peace lies not in passive ideals but in active efforts to create a world where human dignity is upheld, and harm is minimized wherever possible.

Goodwill: Empathy in Action

Goodwill represents a positive and intentional concern for the well-being of others. It is the willingness to act with kindness, generosity, and fairness, even when there is no personal gain. From a Humanist perspective, goodwill is not a supernatural mandate but a natural outcome of understanding our shared humanity. When we recognize that all people experience joy, suffering, hopes, and fears, it becomes clear that kindness is not a weakness but a moral strength.

Goodwill is about cultivating empathy and turning it into action. It asks us to:

• Show kindness to strangers and compassion to those who suffer.

• Practice fairness in how we treat others, regardless of their race, religion, gender, or background.

• Use our privilege to advocate for those whose voices are marginalized or unheard.

This principle extends beyond interpersonal interactions. At a societal level, goodwill means advocating for policies that promote equality, human rights, and environmental stewardship. It means recognizing that goodwill towards all requires addressing systemic injustices, including poverty, discrimination, and climate change—problems that affect us collectively and require collective solutions.

Building an Ethical Life Through Peace and Goodwill

So, how can "peace on earth, goodwill towards all" become a practical guide for an ethical life all year 'round? The answer lies in intentionality. Humanism is about choosing to live ethically because it leads to a better life for ourselves and those around us—not because of external rewards or punishments.

Here are three Humanist practices that embody this principle:

1. Seek Understanding Before Judgment: Whether on a personal or societal level, peace requires understanding others—their perspectives, their struggles, and their humanity. Replace snap judgments with curiosity. Ask questions. Listen actively.

2. Act With Compassion, Not Complacency: Goodwill isn’t passive. It requires us to notice suffering and take action to alleviate it, whether through small daily acts of kindness or larger commitments to service and advocacy. It reminds us that, in most cases, others are acting with goodwill, and challenges us to respond with dignity and respect, even when we find their actions frustrating.

3. Embrace Shared Responsibility: A peaceful and just world cannot be built alone. It requires collective efforts to create systems that promote well-being for all people. As Humanists, we must see ourselves as part of a global community and recognize our shared responsibility to one another and to the planet.

A Hopeful Call to Action

In a world often marked by conflict and division, it can be tempting to dismiss peace and goodwill as idealistic or unattainable. But Humanism calls us to embrace hope as a rational choice. It asks us to believe that a better world is possible because human beings have the capacity to create it.

As we move beyond the holiday season and into the new year, let us carry this message with us: Peace on earth, goodwill towards all is not a distant dream—it is a daily practice. It is a commitment to building bridges instead of walls, to choosing kindness over cruelty, and to working, however imperfectly, toward a world where everyone can flourish.

In striving for peace and practicing goodwill, we not only honor our shared humanity but also lay the foundation for a more just, compassionate, and ethical world—a world where the hope for peace becomes a lived reality, one action at a time.

Resisting Injustice by Centering Humanism: Reason and Compassion in Action

When we witness injustice, the impulse to act can be overwhelming. The world often demands quick responses to pressing problems, but as Humanists, we must approach resistance thoughtfully and deliberately. Our commitment to reason, compassion, and action is what sets us apart—and ensures that our efforts create meaningful, lasting change.

But here’s the catch: none of these principles work in isolation.

• Reason without compassion leads to cold, calculated solutions that harm people instead of helping them.
• Compassion without reason can result in well-meaning but misguided efforts that miss the mark or even exacerbate the problem.
• Action without either reason or compassion causes harm, chaos, and destruction.

To truly resist injustice, we must combine all three: compassion to understand what needs changing, reason to figure out how to change it, and action to make it happen.

Compassion: Identifying the Problem

Compassion is our moral compass, guiding us toward the injustices that demand our attention. It connects us to others, allowing us to see their suffering and recognize the need for change. Without compassion, we risk becoming detached from the human impact of our decisions.

When we encounter workplace inequities, systemic oppression, or societal wrongs, compassion asks: Who is hurting? What are their needs? How can we help? These questions keep us focused on the people at the heart of the issue.

Reason: Designing the Solution

Reason steps in to analyze the problem and develop practical, effective solutions. It asks: What is the best way to solve this? What unintended consequences might arise? How can we create sustainable change?

For example, when tackling workplace discrimination, reason might suggest revising policies, training leaders, or collecting data to address the root causes. In political resistance, it might involve understanding laws, building coalitions, and advocating for evidence-based policies.

Reason ensures that our actions are guided by clarity and strategy, not impulse.

Action: Implementing the Change

Compassion and reason are meaningless without action. To resist injustice, we must be willing to move beyond planning and take real steps to create change. This might mean speaking out, organizing efforts, or supporting those directly impacted by injustice.

Action bridges the gap between intention and impact. It’s the difference between hoping for a better world and building one.

The Humanist Approach to Resistance

This framework—compassion, reason, and action—applies to every kind of problem solving, whether in the workplace or the wider world. Humanists resist injustice by putting these principles into practice. We do not act out of anger or fear but out of a commitment to making the world a better, fairer place for all.

So, as we face challenges in our workplaces, communities, and political systems, let’s remember the Humanist approach:

1. Start with compassion—understand the harm and the humanity behind it.
2. Use reason—find thoughtful, effective ways to address the harm.
3. Take action—because change doesn’t happen without it.

When we combine these principles, we become a powerful force for good, ensuring that our resistance to injustice is as effective as it is ethical.

What Working an Election Taught Me About Executive Function and Training

Working as a tabulator at election polls, I learned a profound lesson about training people: always assume executive processing dysfunction. Not because everyone has it, but because it’s the best way to ensure success for everyone—regardless of their cognitive strengths or challenges.

At the tabulator, I was responsible for giving voters multi-step instructions to ensure their votes were properly counted. On paper, these instructions were simple:

1. Insert your ballot into the tabulator.
2. Wait for the confirmation screen.
3. Collect your “I Voted” sticker and exit the polling area.

Simple, right? Yet, only about 5% of voters could follow all three steps flawlessly when given them all at once. The remaining 95% froze, hesitated, or completed the first step incorrectly. Those who managed to get through step one often forgot or misinterpreted the last steps.

Why did this happen? Everyone was nervous. Voting is important, and people want to get it right. But anxiety, coupled with the need to process multiple instructions simultaneously, can overwhelm even the most competent individuals

I realized the key to smoother interactions was breaking it down:

• Give one instruction.
• Wait for them to complete it.
• Then move on to the next step.

This approach worked like magic. By focusing on guiding one step at a time, I became more effective and patient and the voters were able to follow the instructions effectively and efficiently. 

This experience fundamentally changed how I think about teaching and communication. Multi-step tasks often seem easy to those of us familiar with them, but for someone learning or under stress, they can feel like a mountain. The step-by-step method isn’t just for people with diagnosed executive function challenges; it’s for all of us.

The lesson here? Assume everyone—including yourself—needs this type of guidance. Simplify, focus, and build success one step at a time. Whether you're training someone at work, teaching a skill, or explaining a new process, this approach ensures clarity, reduces stress, and gets better results.

So, next time you’re tempted to rattle off a series of steps, pause. Take it slow, one step at a time, and watch how much smoother everything goes.

The Hidden Danger of Serial Harassers: Why Addressing Behavior Is the Key to Workplace Safety

Harassment in the workplace is often seen as an interpersonal issue—a conflict between two people. This perception can make it difficult for organizations to address the root cause of the problem. What happens when the harasser, rather than retaliating against their accuser, simply moves on to a new target? The answer is troubling: it allows the harassment to continue unchecked, leaving a trail of victims in its wake.

This pattern is not uncommon, and addressing it requires shifting our understanding of harassment from isolated incidents to recognizing it as part of a larger, systemic issue with a problem individual. 

The Misconception of Harassment as an Interpersonal Conflict

When someone reports harassment, HR’s typical response is to treat the issue as a personal conflict between two individuals. The harasser is coached or given a warning, and the victim might receive support to move forward. But when the harasser doesn’t retaliate and instead targets a new individual, the problem is harder to see. The harassment doesn’t stop—it just shifts.

Serial harassers are often more dangerous than those who lash out in anger. They are calculated, and their behavior is subtle, which can allow them to evade consequences. This behavior goes unnoticed because, in each instance, the harassment seems to involve a different person. HR and management, if they don't recognize the pattern, might view each case in isolation, missing the bigger picture.

A Military Comparison: Serial Perpetrators in Large Organizations

A telling analogy can be drawn from military bases that experience high rates of sexual assault. Studies have shown that, contrary to the assumption that multiple people are responsible for the problem, these environments are often plagued by just a few individuals. These repeat offenders are responsible for harming many victims over time, not through retaliation but through finding new targets.

This is why it’s critical to address harassers not as one-off interpersonal incidents but as a potentially serial problem with the guilty individual. The failure to identify these patterns leaves organizations vulnerable to repeat offenses, with victims cycling through and leaving while the perpetrator remains.

Why Documenting Patterns Is Critical

A question I recently received from someone who took one of my online courses highlights this problem. Someone reported that a bully in their workplace wasn’t retaliating against the initial victim after being reported—instead, he simply moved on to the next person. HR coached him after each report, but the pattern continued.

This is where documenting patterns becomes critical. It’s easy to miss the larger issue if each new instance is seen as an isolated event. But if someone starts documenting the harasser’s behavior—recording each report, each coaching session, and the subsequent shift to a new victim—a clearer picture begins to emerge. Once the pattern is identified, it’s far easier to address it effectively and demonstrate to HR that their current interventions are not working.

HR and Leadership’s Role in Protecting Employees

HR’s role is not simply to mediate between employees in conflict. They have a responsibility to protect the entire workforce. When serial harassers are allowed to continue their behavior after each intervention, it sends a message that the organization is either unaware of or unwilling to stop the problem. Coaching without consequence is a band-aid solution for a deep-rooted issue.

Instead, HR must actively seek out patterns of behavior that indicate serial harassment. This can be achieved through documentation, as discussed earlier, but it also requires a shift in mindset. Rather than viewing each complaint as an isolated event, HR needs to understand harassment as a possible pattern of behavior that can escalate over time, harming multiple people.

The Cost of Inaction: Creating New Victims

When a serial harasser is not dealt with, the consequences extend beyond the initial victim. Every time the harasser moves on, they create new victims. The organization becomes complicit in perpetuating harm when it fails to take decisive action to stop the behavior. Over time, this creates an environment where employees feel unsafe and unsupported, leading to decreased morale, productivity, and trust in leadership.

This is why it’s critical to stop serial harassers at the source. Ignoring the pattern or addressing it too leniently only allows the cycle to continue, creating a fresh set of victims each time.

Conclusion

Serial harassment in the workplace is not an issue of individual conflict—it is a repeating problem that requires the proactive intervention of removing the person once it's clear - they serially harass people. Harassers who move from one victim to the next are extremely damaging to your organization. Organizations must stop treating each report as an isolated incident and instead focus on identifying patterns of behavior that reveal a deeper issue.

By documenting harassment, recognizing the larger pattern, and holding harassers accountable, HR and leadership can protect their workforce and prevent new victims from emerging. Harassment is a pattern, not a series of unrelated events—and organizations must start treating it as such to ensure a safer, healthier work environment for all.

Learn More: 

I have many online courses that cover how to identify and stop bullying and harassment in the workplace, for individuals and for young people. Learn how to stop unwanted behavior and how to identify patterns of behavior so that you can stop what is happening once and for all.

https://humanistlearning.com/category/bullyingharassment/