Acts of Kindness

You can immediately make a positive difference in the lives of others with small acts of kindness. Below you will find a list of things that you can do (both involving a cost and not involving a cost) to help others and make the world a better place.

Non-Monetary

  • Send a kind message to a friend or family member

  • Donate blood

  • Babysit for a friend or family member

  • Cook a meal for someone in need

  • Share your umbrella with a stranger

  • Leave a positive review for a local business

  • Help someone carry their groceries

  • Spend time with seniors in your community

  • Encourage someone who seems down

  • At a store, notice a worker’s name tag and say hi using their name

  • Smile and say hello to people as you walk by them

  • Hold the door open for someone

  • Compliment someone on their appearance

  • Write a thank-you note

  • Let someone take a parking spot before you

  • Donate unused items to charity

  • Let someone in a rush go to the front of the line

  • Sign up for a bone marrow registry

  • Shovel a neighbor’s driveway

  • Write a song, poem or haiku for a friend

  • Compliment an employee to their boss

  • Let someone merge ahead of you in traffic

  • Offer to walk a friend or neighbor's dog

  • Mail a letter to a friend with a kind message

  • Return a stranger’s cart at the grocery store

  • Put a post-it note on a mirror with an uplifting note

  • Bring your neighbor’s garbage can back to their house

  • Offer to help a neighbor with chores

  • Listen actively when someone is talking

  • Donate sheets, towels and blankets to an animal shelter

  • Contribute books to a Little Free Library

  • Offer your seat to someone on public transportation

  • Volunteer at a local organization

  • Pick up litter in your community

Monetary

  • Plant a tree

  • Pay for the person behind you in line

  • Leave a generous tip for your server

  • Pay for and deliver a meal for a community member

  • Donate to a charity that is meaningful to someone you know

  • Bring in treats for your coworkers

  • Send a meal to workers at a hospital, fire station or police precinct

  • Buy a gift for someone unexpectedly

  • Pay for a meal of another table at a restaurant

  • Buy lemonade from a child’s lemonade stand

  • Give a lottery ticket to a stranger

  • Buy someone a copy of your favorite book

  • Send flowers to someone unexpectedly

  • Give a barista $20 to start a secret tab for those behind you

  • Give a nice plant to your neighbor