This year I only made one goal for myself:  do a random act of kindness every week.  Now that we are nearly one third of the way through 2015 (wow, already?) I thought I would share an update.

The good news:  I’m still going strong with at least one act a week.  [although I stopped posting a weekly photo on Instagram.  I don’t know… it was feeling tacky and that was never my intention.]

The bad news:  After the initial burst of excitement, it’s been a little harder than I expected.  During a couple weeks, I ‘didn’t feel like’ doing a random act.  Each time was during a moment of emotional or physical exhaustion and I found myself thinking ‘you know, I could really use a random act of kindness FOR MYSELF.‘  Ugly thoughts, I know, but that’s why this goal has been so good for me.  Because, in those moments, I needed to do the random act EVEN MORE.  Not surprisingly, I FEEL SO MUCH BETTER after every. single. act.

 

10 ideas for random acts of kindness

1) Send an amazon electronic gift card to a friend who needs a pick up after a hard day/week/month.

2) Double your dinner recipe and bring the other half to a busy/sick/exhausted friend.

3) Donate some of your family’s toys/books to children who you know will enjoy them [get your kids involved]!

4) Bring coffee to a tired coworker/friend/childcare provider.

5) Bake something yummy and bring it to your neighbors/mailman/teacher.

6)  Send an unexpected care package/gift to someone you love.

7)  Drop some letters in the mail ‘just because’ [include some artwork from the kids]!

8)  Make a donation to a friend’s charity/cause/”gofundme” request.

9)  Pay for the person behind you in the drive through line.

10) Collect old towels/blankets/pet items and donate to an animal rescue organization.

Any other random acts of kindness ideas to share?  Have you ever received one that brightened YOUR day?  Leave a comment below because I’d love new ideas… there are still lots of weeks left in the year!