In Toronto, one man and his glasses are making the city a friendlier place simply by wishing people a great week or even openly declaring to those he sees that they make the world a better place.
Minjae Cho was like thousands of other Torontonians: he took the bus and subway, went to work, and felt alone.
Now, he’s one in a million: a full-time influencer who has received praise from the mayor, the head of the Toronto Transportation Corporation (TTC), and has 36,000 followers on Instagram. Their methods are simple: be brave in your kindness, wish people well, spread kindness, and brighten Toronto one bus ride at a time.
“It all started at a time when I was feeling alone and disconnected, where I wasn’t seeing many people. I wanted to work on being more open in everyday life with social interactions and rebuilding my social confidence,” Cho told CTV News Toronto.
“There’s no malice in what I do… I just say, ‘Have a good day.’ I’m not making jokes. “Most people see my effort and bravery and respond positively.”
He captures all of his interactions with Meta glasses—less intrusive than a phone camera—which often end in smiles, laughter, even hugs; even tears. She has been told that her outreach has helped people get through difficult times, or even avoid making decisions that would change their lives for the worse.
TTC drivers recognize him and are happy to have him on board.
“Everyone could use a little more joy in their life, including during their travel, and these posts certainly convey that sentiment,” Mandeep Lali, CEO of TTC, said in a statement.
MORE STORIES LIKE THIS: Scottish woman scatters random bracelets around town to make locals smile
The videos on his Instagram account, under the username Magnetic MJ, are introspectively interesting. You can clearly taste the tension in the air at times when Cho wishes a good day to someone who seems reluctant to look up from their phone and acknowledge their existence. You’re almost relieved when they finally look up, shake your hand, smile, and you realize that if that same person were watching a video of Cho talking to someone else, they’d probably feel the same way.
Mayor Olivia Chow feels Cho is doing the work of thousands, saying when asked about his videos that if everyone did what he does with one person, on a single bus ride, once a week, the city would feel much more like a neighborhood.
WATCH Cho in action…
Leave a Reply