Random Acts of Kindness Boost Your Well-Being

Shandra Martinez

| 2 min read

Female Neighbor Helping Senior Woman With Shopping
Performing a random act of kindness can have a positive effect on everyone involved. In fact, giving and receiving kindness positively impacts your well-being and can make you a more empathetic leader. The benefits of kindness include increases in energy, happiness, lifespan, pleasure, serotonin and the love hormone, oxytocin. Practicing kindness also has health benefits that can lead to a reduction in pain, stress, depression and blood pressure. So, practice random acts of kindness and do yourself a favor while you’re doing something nice for someone else. Here are some ideas on how you can make a difference in the life of someone else through selfless acts of kindness in the workplace and in the community. In the workplace:
  • Welcome a new co-worker.
  • Share a kind note or letter.
  • Mentor or tutor someone.
  • Be a cheerleader for someone else’s idea or project.
  • Introduce a colleague to a contact in your professional network.
  • Compliment someone on their accomplishment.
  • Donate a vacation day or sick day to a colleague who’s ill or caring for a sick loved one.
  • Compliment a colleague to your boss.
  • Invite a co-worker who is alone over the holidays to your home to celebrate.
  • Ask someone about their background and culture.
  • Bring coffee for a co-worker.
  • Write a thank-you note to someone who has helped your career.
  • Be kind to others.
In the community:
  • Start a community garden.
  • Donate to a pet shelter.
  • Let someone cut in front of you in line.
  • Give an unexpected compliment.
  • Buy lemonade from a child’s lemonade stand.
  • Donate to a local food bank.
  • Volunteer your time.
  • Put coins in an expired meter.
  • Offer to return a stranger’s grocery cart to the front of the store.
  • Pay the bill for the person behind you in the drive-thru line.
  • Keep zippered bags filled with a small bottle of water, snacks and sample-size toiletries in your vehicle to give to the homeless.
  • Write a thank-you note to your mail carrier.
  • Get to know a stranger.
  • Buy raw, local honey.
  • Reduce your carbon footprint.
  • Donate blood.
  • Prepare a care package for an elderly neighbor.
  • Support local businesses.
  • Run or walk for a cause.
  • Start a fundraiser.
Learn more about how to practice random acts of kindness in this Blue Cross® Virtual Well-BeingSM webinar. You can also sign up for future employer-focused and general interest webinars here, where you’ll find past sessions and resources. Related:
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