As the founder of Kindness Matters, I’ve spent years in classrooms, communities, and across cultures working in these moments in real time.
And the reality is: connection beyond difference is determined by your behavior, not your beliefs.
Connection will require something of you. It will ask you to stay when things feel uncomfortable. To listen when you don’t fully agree. To ask a question instead of making a statement. To resist the need to be right. To hear something difficult without making it about you.
These are small decisions, but they change the direction of a moment. And when that happens - even briefly - something becomes possible.
Not because everything is resolved, but because you’re present enough to remember that underneath the noise, the urgency, and the differences that separate us… is another human being.
Just like you.
Meet Laura Waldorf Reiss
I build infrastructure for human connection — practical, teachable, and built to spread.
I founded Kindness Matters in 2008, grew it across several countries, and handed the day-to-day to a CEO I trust. The things worth building are the ones that keep going without you.
Most of my work now happens between two rooms that rarely meet — the one where the resources are and the one where the need is — moving one toward the other.
Real community gets built in person, which is why most of my year is spent in global community — stages, classrooms, retreats, and homes. If you want to know where I'll be next, when the next retreat opens, or follow along with what I’m building, leave me your name
Book Laura
Private sessions
I work directly with individuals to move through what feels unclear or stuck. Together, we make sense of what’s actually happening, so they can move forward with more steadiness and self-trust.
Workshops
On stage, I create experiences where people don’t just hear this work — they feel it in real time. Through live conversation and interaction, I demonstrate what it looks like to come back to yourself and stay there, even in the presence of others.
Mentorship
I work with founders, leaders, and organizations as a strategic partner, offering insight and hands-on support to shape ideas, align people, and move work forward. I help refine what’s being created so it lands in a meaningful and effective way.
KindnessRemembering
From a childhood rooted in warmth and generosity to navigating challenges like dyslexia, loneliness, and personal transformation, this talk is a powerful reminder that kindness isn’t something we learn. It’s something we return to. Through real life stories and science backed insights, she shares how small, intentional acts of compassion can shift our perspective, regulate our nervous system, and create meaningful connection in our everyday lives. This isn’t about grand gestures. It’s about the quiet choices we make, moment by moment, that shape how we show up for others and for ourselves.