Moral support is a key part of helping people in their times of need. Without emotional support, the human aspect of us fails to feel supported, heard, and loved. In this article, we’ll share what moral support is, why you should show moral support, and 21 ways to show it to people in need.
What is moral support?
Moral support or emotional support is a non-physical way to show people affection and love when they’re going through a difficult time. Taking care of someone’s mind when they’re feeling stressed is often the goal of providing moral support.
Why should you show moral support?
1. It helps people
You should show moral support because it helps people when they’re struggling. When people are having a difficult time, they often need more help than when they’re doing well. Sometimes, people feel stuck in their minds and are unable to break the thought cycle. Showing and providing moral support allows them to feel heard while helping them feel better about themselves and their situation.
2. It’s important to be kind
Being kind is essential in life. When we’re kind to others, we often feel better about ourselves. The meaner we are towards others, the worse we feel inside. When we offer emotional support to people, it allows us to be kind, feel good about ourselves, and make a difference.
3. We’re interconnected
All people are interconnected. We rely on each other to help us through the good and bad. When we offer moral support to others, eventually, someone will provide emotional support to us when we need it. If we fail to provide moral support to others, people may be less likely to offer it to us when we need it most.
How to Show Moral Support to People In Need in 2023
1. Ask questions
Providing emotional support to others can be as simple as asking questions. Whenever someone shares something with you, ask them more about it. People usually share things that hurt them or make them happy. And they won’t open up to you unless they want to talk about it. So dig deep, show your moral support by asking how they did it, how it affected them, what they think about it, and if there’s anything you can do to help them further.
2. Compliment them
Have you ever noticed that getting praise or compliments is rare? Well, you’re not alone. A little trick to get more praise is to give more praise. And it’s also a pretty effective way to show moral support. So, if you’re looking to cheer someone up, consider telling them what you appreciate about them. Give specific details about what you think this person is capable of achieving. Say I love you randomly when they’re feeling sad. Randomly message them compliments out of the blue to make people happy.
3. Say nice things behind their back
Most people say negative things about us behind closed doors. However, if you want to show moral support, consider saying nice things about everyone behind their back. If people consistently hear rumors about your secret compliments, they’ll turn to you when they need to feel uplifted. And it’s easier to give moral support if people trust you to have a positive mental attitude when they’re going through a tough time.
4. Hype them up
Have you ever thought about becoming a motivational speaker? Well, you don’t need a stage to do it; all you need is your voice. Give emotional support by giving pep talks or having heart-to-hearts with people when they’re having a tough time. If someone’s going through a break-up, tell them how proud you are of them for handling the situation well. Let them know that you’ll support them whether they jump back in or take a break. List off the qualities or attributes they have that’ll make them a great life partner for someone. And remind them to stand up for themselves in future relationships to build an even stronger foundation.
5. Help them complete a task
Sometimes, people need moral support when they’re burnt out. If someone you love is overwhelmed with their to-do list, consider showing your emotional support by helping them with some of their tasks. If you notice a parent is stressed at work, show up for them by cleaning their house while they pick up a shift on the weekend. And then surprise them with dinner. If a coworker just came back from medical leave, you can offer to help them with some of their projects until they feel ready to take on their workload on their own.
6. Get people to sign a card
People often sign birthday cards, work anniversary cards, or even wedding cards. But have you ever signed an “I believe in you card.” If you know someone you love or work with is going through a difficult transition or working hard for a new opportunity, have family or coworkers write them a card of support. Getting people to support someone going through a tough time by writing a heartfelt message will help give people confidence to take the next step.
7. Show up
A meaningful way to show moral support is by showing up. Sometimes, people only need you to be with them to provide emotional support, love them, and help them through a tough time. If you know someone has an important exam they’ve been studying for, you might offer to meet them for lunch or dinner after it’s over. Or, if someone has a soccer tournament that matters to them, showing up at the game can be a huge sign of emotional support. Be there for people when they ask for help or when they want you to be there for them.
8. Schedule weekly calls
Whenever you find out that someone is struggling with mental health, parenthood, divorce, school, or work, add a reminder on your phone to set up a weekly call with that person until things get better. Scheduling weekly calls to check in on people is a great way to show moral support. Sometimes, people need to vent, and if you’re consistently lending a listening ear, you’re doing well to show moral support.
9. Listen to them
You can show moral support by listening to someone. Listening can be very challenging, mainly when the individual brings up the same complaint in every conversation for years. Unless you work as a therapist, you can’t help them rework their thoughts. However, if something seems off, you can help them challenge their negative thoughts while still supporting them in nature. Help them feel heard in the conversation so that they feel relieved after your chat rather than feeling lost in their thoughts after it.
10. Send them a gift
A great way to show moral support is by giving a gift. Giving gifts is one of the love languages to show people you care about them. For example, if someone you know has been having panic attacks while planning their wedding, you could give them a gift of a roll-on relaxing scent that they can spread on their wrist and sniff when they feel anxious. On their wedding day, when they feel anxious before the ceremony you can recommend that they roll it on and inhale it to calm their senses as scents can have a calming effect.
11. Tell them, “I love you”
When it comes to family and friends, we know they love us. Yet, it can sometimes be rare to hear it from certain people. The next time someone reaches out to you about something they’re struggling with, say the words, “I love you.” Sometimes, people need to hear it to feel a bit better. Don’t be afraid to vocalize your love for your loved ones because you never know when it’ll be too late to tell them.
12. Validate their feelings
You can show a great deal of moral support by validating someone’s feelings. When someone expresses their sadness or frustration over a breakup, you can tell them that it’s completely normal to experience those feelings after a loss like that. Sometimes, people need to hear that their experience is normal. Instead, people are often told they’re overreacting or to get over it. However, it’s not always easy to let things go.
13. Check-in
Create a list of all the family members and friends you haven’t spoken to in a while that you’d like to get in touch with. Then, set a day to start making phone calls, house visits, or video chats with each person on the list to ask them how they’re doing, if there’s anything they need help with, and give them a few compliments or praise. Doing regular check-ins ensures that you’re able to provide moral support, even to people you might not be in touch with as often. It also allows you to create stronger relationships with people.
14. Express your gratitude
One way to show your moral support to someone is by expressing how grateful you are to have them in your life. Being vocal about what amazes you about this person will help them feel appreciated and supported. You can give so much emotional support simply by texting them a gratitude list of all the things you love about them or handwriting it all in a card that you mail to them. Never be silent about sharing your gratitude with other people. Everyone appreciates hearing it.
15. Help them de-stress
You can show moral support by helping someone de-stress. If someone seems more anxious than usual, you can help ease their pain by showing empathy vs sympathy. You can help make the environment more fun so they can calm down a bit. And you can support them so that they can tackle their project, homework, or task without feeling overwhelmed by it. Something as simple as preparing a meal for them can save them time to focus on their priorities.
16. Fulfill their needs
Ask someone what their needs are when you want to provide emotional support. Gently coax it out of them. It’s hard to help someone when they don’t vocalize what their needs are. You might need to ask some additional questions to get the bottom line truth out of them. Once you know their fundamental needs, you can provide your moral support to ensure that they get their needs from you and anyone else necessary.
When someone needs moral support, consider sharing things that inspire you. You might make a list of inspirational videos or songs that uplift you when you need a boost. You could also write a letter of support similar to the one you received when you needed it. You could curate a collection of inspirational things and compile it for this person so that they can regain the confidence to tackle everything they’re facing. Here’s a video on motivation that might help them.
18. Keep it light
People who need moral support are often people who might be going through a tough time. Avoid being combative when you feel frustrated about pushback from them. Some people add walls that are hard to break through. Keep your focus on making the environment light while also reading the tone of the situation. A person struggling as a single parent shortly after the death of a spouse doesn’t want to laugh. However, a person who is going through a tough time at work might need that chuckle.
19. Do a kind activity together
Acts of kindness are proven to make people feel better about themselves. Consider offering moral support by asking your friend or loved one to join you in doing some good deeds. Sometimes, when you’re going through a tough time, the only thing that helps is seeing your impact in making others happy. And when you realize you’re helping people who might be struggling themselves, you realize you’re not alone in your suffering.
20. Keep your promises
Keeping your promises is an excellent way to show moral support. If you promise to be there for someone in a situation, being there for them is a necessity. You can also offer emotional support by keeping your wedding vows and promising to be there for your spouse through the good times and bad. And in daily situations, keeping your promise to return a phone call when a friend had a bad day is important even if you’re exhausted.
21. Pamper them
The final way to show moral support is to pamper someone. Often, when people are struggling, they stop taking care of themselves. Booking an appointment to go to a spa, get a massage, get their makeup done, or get a haircut are all ways people might need to be pampered. We often let ourselves go when we’re in a rut. So, offer encouragement to those who need emotional support right now.
Conclusion
If you were wondering how to show moral support at the beginning of this article, you now have a list of 21 ways to show moral support to choose from. Whether it’s doing acts of generosity, complimenting them, helping others de-stress, or any other helpful task, you can provide emotional support to those who need it. Thank you for being such a kind person for your friend; they’re lucky to have you in their lives.
