Our world has changed so much this year. People are arguing over politics, there is more hate and violence than ever, and negativity seems to be pulsing throughout the media and on social media as well. And while we all try to make sense of our changing world, the one theme that keeps coming up to me is kindness. We might not be able to change everything at once, but we all have the capability to be kind, nice, loving, and help spread kindness around “like confetti.”
I personally, have taken a step back the past month. I’ve been writing less here on the blog, and avoiding confrontations on social. And I can tell you, it’s been heaven. I’ve also been trying to make more positive changes in our home through different parenting strategies, and in our marriage. So I thought the holiday season and the month of December would be a great time to come up with 31 ways to spread kindness, one for each day. These are things you can do alone, or with your family, to help teach spreading good will, love, and of course kindness.
I hope you will join me, and throughout the month of December, perform one act of kindness a day. Most of these do not require any monetary contribution, just ways to be kind to others and ourselves. We all deserve a little more grace in our lives, let’s do this together and spread #31daysofkindness!
31 ways to spread kindness in december
1 Pay someone a compliment.
2 Donate a toy to a child in need.
3 Call someone you haven’t talked to in forever. No texts allowed, an actual phone call.
4 Bring a meal to a friend just because, or donate to a food bank.
5 Pay for someone’s coffee today, or by someone a $5 coffee gift card!
6 Look in the mirror and say something nice to yourself.
7 Smile at a stranger.
8 When someone is unkind to you, don’t respond. This is the first step to learning not to take things personally.
9 Write a note for someone you love and put it somewhere they will find it. It could even be a post-it note, the point is to let someone you care about know that you are thinking about them! (I really love this book about the importance of writing to your kids by Lauren Cormier!)
10 Fill out a survey at a store and compliment an employee if they were good to you.
11 Share a kindness quote on social media.
12 Donate to a veteran. (You can schedule a pickup here!)
13 Do some sort of exercise that you love; ride a bike, walk, swim, yoga, whatever it is, do it for you. (And if you are trying to be healthy check out this fitness planner!)
14 Offer to watch your friend’s kids for an hour so she can have some time to herself.
15 Leave change in a vending machine for a stranger to find.
16 Be kind to nature, plant something. It could be a tree, a flower, some herbs, anything that will help our environment.
17 Leave an envelope with a few dollar bills taped to a rack at the Dollar Store or the $1 bins at Target.
18 Return a shopping cart in the parking lot. Or collect a few and help the store workers out!
19 Leave a positive comment or two on a friend’s social media post or a blog. (We love comments!!)
20 Donate to a homeless person or better yet bring them a hot meal and actually talk to them.
21 Write a letter to someone you care about and mail it!
22 Donate used clothing.
23 Wrap presents for someone who you know needs help.
24 Bake something you are known for and share it with your neighbors. (These reindeer cookies are always a hit!)
25 Be kind to yourself, take an hour to do something just for you.
26 Write handwritten thank you notes after the holiday and mail them.
27 Visit a pet shelter and offer to donate items they may need. Most will love old towels or blankets for animals to cuddle on!
28 If you eat out, consider leaving a big(ger) tip this day.
29 Clean out your closet or drawers, and help your spouse or children with theirs. It will feel so good to start fresh in the New Year!
30 Let someone go in front of you in line, wherever you are.
31 Start a gratitude journal to start off the New Year with a grateful heart.
I hope you’ll be inspired to take this challenge and start being kinder to yourself and others. And I’ve made a printable version of this below, so you can print it out and post somewhere in your home as a reminder!
If you do decide to join in this kindness challenge, please share this post so others can join you! Also use #31daysofkindness on social media so we can get kindness trending! Sending much love to everyone this holiday season!
If you are looking for more kindness ideas, check out the BE KIND CHALLENGE 2016 from Working Mom Magic.
And if you would be so kind, (see what I did there?) please click below and vote for me!
These are great ideas. I was writing a post this morning with ideas for celebrating the season of Advent and had some similar ideas, but your list is even more comprehensive. We should all practice kindness 365 days of the year. Thanks also for the reminder to be kinder to ourselves as well.
Agreed, we all need to do this year round. But this is a start!
Kristen, absolutely great ways to spread some much needed kindness and definitely going to have to try a few of these myself this upcoming month. Thank you 🙂
Oh, I love this!! I mean, lord knows we need some extra kindness in this country right about now!
I love your kind heart! Thank you for this, sharing for sure!
We usually incorporate acts of kindness into our advent activities. This is a great list! I love that they range from the really simple, needing nothing but words to also some things that may take time or money and be harder to give.
yes I wanted it to be simple so people could keep up! THanks for reading!
This is an awesome way to give what we would like to receive this holiday season! Thank you for helping us remember the best gifts to give and ideas to inspire action! You’re awesome!!
I love all of these ideas! I think spreading kindness is always important, but it means a little something extra around this time of the year:)
Love all of these ideas! I think they are great to remember throughout the year too not just during the holidays 🙂
Love it! I will start using both hashtags when I post kind acts! 🙂
These are sweet ideas. I know my kids would love to take part in a few of these activivites.
Love this. I love spreading joy, kindness and all things positive. Why not, right? It makes others feel special, while making ourselves feel good.
Kindness never goes out of style.
Hey, can I use your “Kindness is contagious” design in my t-shirt store?
Hi. I created this myself and would prefer you make your own design.
“8 When someone is unkind to you, don’t respond. This is the first step to learning not to take things personally.” Really? Is that your idea on how to spread kindness? How about jerks learn how to take responsibility for their actions and words? When you ask for a good person to take abuse you are just enabling verbal abuse to happen, again and again. Kindness is a great thing, but telling others to turn the other cheek is not the answer. Teach the mean to be kind, or to deal with the consequences of being a douche. Stop telling
good people to be a doormat
Giving in to their unkindness and responding takes away your power. By not reacting you are not being doormat, you are standing in your power and choosing to reverse the cycle. Everyone we meet is our mirror, we can’t change them.