13 Ideas For Random Acts Of Kindness Day
Posted on February 17 2021
Today (17th February) is Random Acts Of Kindness Day. And when have we ever needed kindness more than now, during these challenging Covid times…
If you have time on your hands and you're sat at home wondering what random acts of kindness can I do...why not take a few minutes out of your day to put a smile on someone else's face?
All of the following ideas can be done whilst in lockdown, using online or telephone resources.
1) Want to help during this whole Coronavirus nightmare, but not sure where to start? Log onto www.covidmutualaid.org, find local communities that are helping and offer support. At the most basic level, you could be helping someone who is vulnerable and at home alone (occasionally touching base, sending them messages or bringing them essential food items, should they need it).
2) If you’re wondering what might be good acts of kindness for kids, have you thought of buying kindness cards? They're small, business-type cards with lovely messages on them. You could teach your kids empathy and kindness by encouraging them to surprise friends, family, shop assistants, restaurant staff…even the postman!! A tip recommended on one of my local Facebook groups by Jane - a life coach for women over 40 and the founder of Live, Love Sparkle.
3) Create and send a photo jigsaw puzzle to an elderly relative or friend who might be at home bored and will love putting all those pieces together. I used Your Surprise to send my husband's gran a photo jigsaw puzzle of our wedding and she absolutely loved it.
Photo credit to Étienne Godiard on Unsplash.
4) Start supporting local businesses…why not order from that restaurant round the corner that you’ve always been curious about, but never got round to trying? When was the last time you left a kind review on Google for that shop you love buying from, or that business that helps keep you sane and happy? Reviews and recommendations mean so much to a small business...every order you place goes towards helping someone stay in business, every (good) review or recommendation helps other people want to buy from them. All it takes is a couple of clicks and a couple of shares on social media and you can make a huge difference to businesses that makes a difference to your life.
5) Cheer someone up through a surprise card or gift via Moonpig. One of my school friends, Cheryl, who I've known for over 30 years, recently sent some of us a gorgeous bar of chocolate. Why? Just to show she cares, during the first two typically difficult months of the year.
6) It's therapeutic to have plants around the house. Why not send someone you love an "unkillable houseplant" from a lovely, small British brand Beards & Daisies.
7) Get behind a worthy cause and sign a petition with https://www.change.org/. You'll not only be educating yourself about thousands of important causes you had no idea about, which in itself means you might start driving awareness of them to others, but you'll also be that one extra signature that takes them forwards.
Photo credit to Olia Nayda on Unsplash.
8) Love dogs? Find out about the incredible story of one woman selflessly helping stray dogs in a country with one of the worst rates of animal abuse in Europe. Dash Dogs relies on local hotels for food, but with travel restrictions everywhere, the owner is desperate for any help...every penny counts and I myself donate a small amount every month. The cause was introduced to me by Miranda, the fashion stylist, who aside from having a glossy website and some VIP clients, tries to save every dog on every holiday she goes on (seriously!). She regularly visits the Dash Dogs shelter to lend a helping hand, to raise funds and to rehome needy dogs (she has adopted a couple herself!).
9) Click the social media icons at the bottom of this post and share these ideas on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest (or other platforms) to inspire others to do good things. The more people you tell, the greater the ripple effect and likelihood of further random acts of kindness, simply because you've taken a couple of minutes to share these ideas with others.
10) What's App all your friends to find out how they are. You might be having a hard time, but they might be having a worse time, and will appreciate you touching base. I find What’s App audio a great way to leave longer messages and be able to hear people’s voices so that you get a feel for how they are, when a conversation isn't possible.
11) Tragically, the level of domestic violence has skyrocketed since people have been forced to self-isolate. Refuge supports women, children and men experiencing domestic violence with a range of services. Did you know that there are some simple ways that you can support the charity through your everyday shopping activities AT NO EXTRA COST TO YOU? All it takes is a few clicks to make these things happen https://www.refuge.org.uk/get-involved/other-ways-to-donate/. They even have a screensaver for those Zoom calls...
A Bloom & Wild gift I received from a very good friend for my birthday.
12) It’s no surprise that flowers are one of the best gifts for women! With Bloom & Wild you get something extra though. Because the flowers come in a box and the recipient is given instructions on how to best arrange them in a vase, you are not only giving someone a beautiful bunch of flowers, but also the gift of mindfulness as they focus for a few moments on creating the perfect bouquet.
13) Buy from or support a small business and help them to stay afloat! As a small business ourselves, we understand the value of each and every kind gesture…whether that’s a friend sharing on social media, a journalist shining some light on our brand or a customer ordering from us. As a random act of kindness, we’d like to give some love to a handful of other independent brands and invite you to discover the perfect accessories for your Cat Turner London dress… sustainable sunglasses from Pala, beautiful necklaces from PureShore or rings from Dorsya. And while we're at it, here's 10% off our own boutique dresses until February 28th 2021 - click HERE to redeem.
We really hope our ideas for random acts of kindness day have inspired you...and more importantly have encouraged you to take action. It’s great to have an annual celebration of kindness, as it not only reminds us once a year to do kind things for other people, but also what we can be doing on an on-going basis to make the world a better place.
We'll be continuing this conversation on social media and would love to hear your ideas and experiences...join us on Facebook and Instagram.
Discover our boutique dresses here. We are passionate about ethically made clothing and our beautiful collection of dresses is timeless, flattering and versatile, made in the UK by highly skilled dressmaking teams in London.