What are random acts of kindness and how might you practice them in your life? Get tons of ideas for how to use random acts of kindness (and boost your well-being).
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Have you ever done something nice for someone else, ‘just because’. It wasn’t to repay them or because you had to—it was simply because you wanted to. Well then, you’ve done a random act of kindness. Read on to learn how to do more random acts of kindness in your life to boost your mood and improve the lives of others.
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What Are Random Acts of Kindness? (A Definition)
Random acts of kindness are acts performed by a person wishing to either help or positively affect another person (Passmore & Oades, 2015). Sometimes random acts of kindness are defined as kind acts that one does only for someone they don’t know (Baskerville et al., 2000), but this doesn’t seem to be the magic ingredient (Curry et al., 2018). Simply being kind has benefits for well-being (and that’s what we’re focused on here).
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The Benefits of Random Acts of Kindness
Kindness is one of the most valued character strengths in Western society (Binfet, 2015). We like kind people, so being kind can help us be liked. Beyond that, being kind has been shown to boost not only others’ well-being but also our own personal well-being. For example, if we spend more money on others we are generally happier, and if we volunteer to help others, we are generally healthier (Curry et al., 2018).
Why might random acts of kindness be good for us?
Some researchers have proposed that happiness is just the emotional experience we have when we act in ways that promote our survival. Given that kindness helps us build healthy relationships with others—others who may be able to protect and support us—evolutionary psychologists believe that kindness makes us happy because it helps us survive and thrive. This may be especially true when we help family, friends, community members, and spouses (Curry et al., 2018).
- Witnessing our parents engage in random acts of kindness likely makes it more likely that we will too. Monkey see monkey do, right?
- If someone tells us that we’re kind, we might also be more likely to engage in random acts of kindness.
- If we see someone else showing kindness, we are more likely to show kindness. Researchers suggest that kindness is even contagious (Baskerville et al., 2000).
Video: 99+ Random Acts of Kindness: List, Ideas, & Examples
Examples of Random Acts of Kindness
- Giving compliments
- Giving gifts
- Saying kind words
- Showing gratitude
- Doing an act of service for someone else
- Being respectful
- Noticing good things that others do
- Giving your time to someone else
Random Acts of Kindness List
Want to start engaging in random acts of kindness? Here’s a big list of ideas. Feel free to do any of these ideas or change them in ways that fit your life or your style.
- Compliment someone on one of their personality traits
- Write a handwritten card to someone to say thanks
- Text a friend to share your gratitude for something they did for you
- Leave a positive review online of a restaurant you like
- Tell a friend what you love about their children
- Compliment a photo someone posts on social media
- Let someone cut in front of you in line
- Introduce two people who you think would get along
- Pick up trash on the ground and put it in the garbage
- Compliment someone on their clothing or hair
- Use old grocery bags to pick up dog poop you see on your neighbor's lawn
- Shovel snow off the sidewalk in your neighborhood
- Offer to mow the lawn for an elderly neighbor
- Give up your seat on the plane to let a couple sit together
- Talk to someone at a party that doesn’t seem to know anyone
- Invite someone new in your town to a social event and introduce them to everyone
- Invite a friend that you haven’t seen in a while out to lunch
- Offer to pick up a friend at the airport
- Reach out to an old friend to let them know of an experience you had with them that you value
- Spend time with the elderly at a local retirement home
- Address your cashier, waiter, or other service people by their first names
- Offer to bring someone else's grocery cart back to the store
- Keep an extra pen in your purse to give people when they need one
- Put a positive note in a library book
- Attend events that support your friends’ passions (like an art show, musical performance, etc…)
- Donate unused items to charity
- Bring snacks to the local fire station
- Keep packs of toothpaste or packs of socks in your bag to give to homeless people
- Post an uplifting photo on a friend’s social media
- Compliment someone on something they’ve done or accomplished
- Tell a parent that they’re doing a great job raising their kids
- Bring or send your mother flowers
- Bring a friend a small gift next time you see them
- Buy a warm meal to give to a homeless person
- Share an article, event, or other information with someone who might be interested
- Help to connect a friend seeking a job to someone who has a job to offer
- Help a neighbor bring in their groceries
- Make dinner for your friend group
- Compliment a neighbor on how nice their yard looks
- Bring in the trash bins for your neighbor after trash has been picked up
- Send an email to a former teacher to let them know how they impacted your life
- Leave a thank you note in your mailbox for your mail carrier
- Give a flower to a stranger
- Buy a gift card to give to a stranger
- Ofter to be there for a friend when they are struggling with something
- Give bottles of water to people working outside on a hot day
- Buy a sandwich for the next person in the lunch line
- Leave a sticky note with a positive note somewhere public, like at a bus stop
- Bring brownies to your next neighborhood association meeting
- Scrape the ice off the car windshield of the car next to yours
- Leave a positive comment on someone else's social media post, #ProsocialPost
- Put coins in someone’s parking meter that is about to run out
- Slow down to let someone merge in front of you in traffic
- Be on time (don’t waste others’ time)
- Hold the door open for the person walking behind you
- Make a double batch of dinner so that you can give a meal to someone in need
- Give directions to someone who is lost
- Give an extra big tip when eating out
- Practice compassion when someone else is struggling
- Be self-compassionate when you’re struggling with something
- Share veggies you grow in your garden with friends, neighbors, and family
- Become an organ donor
- Volunteer at the local animal shelter
- Bring dinner to a friend who's just had a baby
- Build a “little free library” box in your yard with books for everyone to read
Video: How One Act Of Kindness a Day Can Change Your Life
Ideas for Random Acts of Kindness at Work
- Donate a sick day to someone who’s dealing with a chronic illness
- Tell your boss what you appreciate about him/her
- Cover a coworker’s shift
- Tell a joke to lighten the mood during a difficult task
- Bring extra snacks to share with coworkers
- Write a handwritten card to a coworker thanking them for their help on something
- Invite the new guy at work out to lunch
- Tell your boss about the great work that your coworkers are doing
- Bring a coworker a cup of coffee
- Leave a sticky note for a work colleague saying what you appreciate about them
- Make cookies for everyone in your workplace
- Mentor someone
- Help others when they need help
- Offer to lighten someone else's load by doing some of their work
- Send an email to someone who helped you grow in your career
- Be generous with your time and attention.
Ideas for Random Acts of Kindness in Relationships
- Help your partner bring in the groceries
- Buy your partner something they’ve been wanting
- Take care of the kids (or other responsibilities) so your partner can go out or relax
- Do your romantic partner’s chores
- Give your partner a random gift
- Get a couples massage for the two of you
- Tell your partner what you love about them
- Spend a day noticing the small stuff you love about your partner and share what you noticed
- Find a way to help your partner reach their biggest dreams (e.g., if she’s a painter, buy her some paints, or if he wants to become a lawyer, offer to introduce him to someone who can offer advice)
- Make dinner (and dessert) for your partner
Random Acts of Kindness for Kids
There has been a recent push to teach children how to engage in prosocial acts like random acts of kindness (Binfet, 2015). Given how we learn everything easier when we’re young and how beneficial kindness can be for relationships, health, and well-being, it makes sense to encourage kids to engage in random acts of kindness. But what does kindness mean when it comes to children?
Kids are not totally unlike adults. According to researchers, kids’ perspective of kindness is that it is “an act of emotional or physical support that helps build or maintain relationships with others” (Binfet & Gaertner, 2015, pp. 36-37). Given this definition, what might be some random acts of kindness for kids? Here are some ideas.
- Sharing crayons or other supplies with other kids
- Giving someone a gift like a sticker, flower, or colorful eraser
- Saying thanks to a fellow student for help with schoolwork
- Bringing your teacher an apple as a gift
- Getting a bandaid for another kid when they get a cut
- Telling friends what you like about them
- Offering to help mom or dad make dinner
- Cleaning up your bedroom without being asked
- Making a dandelion necklace for a friend
- Bringing extra snacks in your lunchbox for kids who don’t have any
Random Acts of Kindness Day
Given how beneficial random acts of kindness are for our (and others’) well-being, there is now officially a random acts of kindness day, which is held on February 17th of each year (in the US). Sometimes, the week surrounding random acts of kindness day is also called random acts of kindness week. This day (and week) is meant to celebrate and encourage random acts of kindness. The hope is that it’ll encourage acts of altruism, kindness, community service, and generally ‘paying it forward’.
Random Acts of Kindness Quotes
- “Kindness is doing what you can, where you are, with what you have -- RAKtivist
- “ Be kind whenever possible. Pro tip—It is always possible” —sign in my town (originally, the 14th Dalai Lama
- “How do we change the world? One random act of kindness at a time.” -- Morgan Freeman
- “I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” -- Maya Angelou
- “When I was young, I admired clever people. Now that I am old, I admire kind people.” -- Abraham Joshua Heschel
- “ You cannot do kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late.” —Ralph Waldo Emerson
- “Compassion isn’t about solutions. It’s about giving all the love that you’ve got.” —Cheryl Strayed
- “Carry out a random act of kindness, with no expectation of reward, safe in the knowledge that one day someone might do the same for you.” —Princess Diana
Random Acts of Kindness Videos
Watching other people engage in random acts of kindness may help us to follow suit. So here are some videos that might inspire and motivate you.
