Random Acts of Kindness Day: 106 Easy Ways to Do Good and Spread Positivity

Random Acts of Kindness Day is coming up on February 17, offering you and your team an amazing opportunity to brighten up somebody’s day. Here are 106 ways to celebrate with your team, whether in person or virtually.

Each year on February 17, Random Acts of Kindness Day is observed to encourage people to do good deeds for others—even things as simple as complimenting someone, helping a neighbor with groceries, paying for someone’s coffee, or volunteering at a local charity.

The purpose of this day is to inspire a ripple effect of kindness in the community and empower people to pay it forward. This, in turn, supports a positive cycle that improves community spirit, promotes empathy, and makes the world a slightly better place, one kind gesture at a time.

So, if you’re interested in kickstarting the ripple effect of positivity in your workplace, here are 106 of the best ways we’ve heard so far.  

52 Random Acts of Kindness Day Ideas You Can Do at Your Office

When it comes to spreading kindness, no gesture is too small. From quick acts to more in-depth activities, check out 52 Random Acts of Kindness ideas you can do at your office.

1. Appreciation Notes: Boost morale by leaving anonymous notes praising colleagues for their hard work.
2. Team Breakfast: Strengthen team bonds by providing a surprise breakfast for the entire team.
3. Coffee Orders: Show thoughtfulness by taking and delivering personalized coffee orders for your team.
4. Plant Gifts: Enhance colleagues’ workspaces with the gift of small, easy-care plants.
5. Compliments Board: Create a dedicated space for team members to publicly post compliments about each other.
6. Desk Decoration: Brighten a colleague’s day by decorating their desk with positive and affirming messages.
7. Coffee Vouchers: Foster a sense of community by randomly giving out vouchers for free coffee.
8. Transport Vouchers: Show consideration for commuter colleagues by providing public transport vouchers.
9. Healthy Snacks: Encourage healthy eating by supplying a variety of nutritious snacks.
10. Thank You Emails: Personalize appreciation by sending heartfelt thank you emails.
11. Yoga/Meditation Sessions: Promote well-being by organizing yoga or meditation sessions during lunch.
12. Charity Donation: Demonstrate corporate social responsibility by making a donation to charity on behalf of the team.
13. Book Donation: Support literacy and learning by setting up a station for donating books.
14. Desk Clean-Up: Help out a busy colleague by surprising them with a clean and organized workspace.
15. Letters to Team Members: Make appreciation personal by writing heartfelt letters to each team member.
16. Professional Development Books: Invest in your colleagues’ growth by gifting books related to professional development.
17. Lunch Lottery: Create fun by holding a lottery to take a randomly chosen colleague out to lunch.
18. Impromptu Activities: Build spontaneity and teamwork by organizing unplanned team activities.
19. Mentorship Sessions: Leverage experience by coordinating mentorship sessions with senior staff.
20. Gratitude Jar: Cultivate a culture of gratitude with a jar for collecting notes expressing thanks.
21. Breakroom Treats: Delight colleagues by providing cookies or candies in the breakroom.
22. Group Volunteering: Strengthen team and community bonds by volunteering during work hours.
23. Workload Assistance: Show solidarity by assisting colleagues with their workload.
24. Team Meeting Recognition: Foster a recognition culture by acknowledging hard work in team meetings.
25. Positive Affirmations: Uplift each team member by assigning them positive affirmations.
26. Trivia Games: Encourage learning and fun by organizing short trivia games during breaks.
27. Potluck Lunch: Celebrate diversity and teamwork with a coordinated potluck lunch.
28. Flower Handout: Brighten the day by handing out flowers to team members.
29. Post-It Compliments: Spread joy with spontaneous Post-It note compliments on monitors.
30. Encouragement Cards: Offer support through personalized encouragement cards.
31. Extended Breaks: Show care by allowing extra-long breaks for the team.
32. Social Media Recognition: Enhance visibility by recognizing colleagues’ efforts on social media.
33. Art Supplies: Spark creativity by providing art supplies for creative breaks.
34. Kindness Workshop: Deepen understanding by hosting a workshop focused on kindness.
35. Gift Card Distribution: Surprise and delight random team members with gift cards.
36. Kind Acts Wall: Visually celebrate kindness by creating a wall displaying photos of kind acts.
37. Errand Assistance: Offer practical help by assisting with a colleague’s personal errands.
38. Kindness Challenge: Engage the team with a challenge to commit random acts of kindness.
39. Sundae Station: Create a treat-filled break with an ice cream sundae station.
40. Employee Spotlight: Boost recognition by spotlighting different employees hourly.
41. Thoughtful Gift Exchange: Encourage thoughtfulness with an exchange of small gifts.
42. Pets at Work: Build camaraderie by allowing pets in the workplace for a day.
43. Charity Clothing Drive: Support those in need by hosting a clothing drive.
44. Half-Day Off Reward: Show appreciation by surprising the team with a half-day off.
45. Kindness Bingo: Mix fun and kindness with a bingo game featuring different acts.
46. Cultural Celebration: Enrich workplace culture by celebrating diverse backgrounds.
47. Storytelling Sessions: Share and connect through sessions recounting meaningful experiences.
48. Wellness Packs: Support health and well-being with distributed wellness gift packs.
49. Team Charity Contribution: Make a collective impact by contributing to a local charity.
50. Childcare Provision: Ease the work-life balance by providing on-site childcare for a day.
51. Empathy Talks: Foster a supportive environment by discussing kindness and empathy.
52. Annual Kindness Awards: Instill a tradition by annually celebrating significant acts of kindness.

50 Random Acts of Kindness Day Ideas You Can Do in Your Personal Life

While it’s amazing to do random acts of kindness at work, they can be equally impactful in your personal life as well.

Not sure where to start?

Here are 50 simple but incredibly impactful things you can do to spread a little bit of joy on Random Acts of Kindness Day—or any other day of the year:

1. Pay for the coffee of the person behind you in line.
2. Leave a generous tip for a waiter/waitress.
3. Compliment a stranger genuinely.
4. Donate to a charity.
5. Volunteer at a local shelter.
6. Bake cookies for your neighbors.
7. Offer to help an elderly neighbor with their groceries.
8. Write a thank-you note to a colleague.
9. Give up your seat on public transport.
10. Plant a tree or flowers in a communal area.
11. Hold the door open for someone.
12. Leave a positive review for a small business.
13. Donate blood.
14. Send an encouraging text to a friend.
15. Help someone with their resume or job search.
16. Share your umbrella with a stranger.
17. Leave a book in a public place for someone to find.
18. Bring treats to work for your colleagues.
19. Offer to babysit for a family member or friend.
20. Prepare a meal for a homeless person.
21. Clean up litter in a park or beach.
22. Donate used books to a library.
23. Surprise a friend with their favorite snack.
24. Offer to mow a neighbor’s lawn.
25. Share your expertise or skills with someone who needs it.
26. Pay a compliment to your boss or a coworker.
27. Leave a kind note in a library book.
28. Give away flowers to random people on the street.
29. Buy groceries for a struggling family.
30. Share your lunch with someone who doesn’t have one.
31. Write letters to soldiers or hospital patients.
32. Smile at everyone you see for a day.
33. Make a playlist for a friend.
34. Start a conversation with someone who looks lonely.
35. Offer to run errands for an elderly person.
36. Donate gently used clothing to a shelter.
37. Teach a skill or hobby to kids in your community.
38. Bring in your neighbor’s trash bins.
39. Pay the toll for the car behind you.
40. Make a homemade gift for someone.
41. Sponsor a child’s education or extracurricular activity.
42. Walk a friend’s or neighbor’s dog.
43. Offer to take a photo for tourists.
44. Recommend a friend’s business or services.
45. Donate toys to a children’s hospital.
46. Leave a big tip for hotel housekeeping.
47. Share your meal with someone in need.
48. Offer your seat on a crowded bus or train.
49. Put a coin in an expired parking meter.
50. Leave a surprise note or small gift in someone’s mailbox.

4 Team Building Activities to Celebrate Random Acts of Kindness Day

If you’re looking for a more structured way to celebrate Random Acts of Kindness Day with your colleagues, you can’t go wrong with a charitable team building activity.

Here are a few you might like.

1. Charity Bike Buildathon

Want a way to give back while helping your team hone valuable business skills at the same time? Then you’ll love this.

With Charity Bike Buildathon, your workgroup will split into teams to build, decorate, and put together an advertising campaign for children’s bicycles.

After each group has presented their bike, you get to donate them all to a charity of your choice!

2. Random Acts of Kindness

Philanthropy isn’t always about donating money or goods. Sometimes, it can just be about spreading some cheer and goodwill.

Random Acts of Kindness fuses the scavenger hunt concept with a philanthropic twist. This team building activity gets teams racing against one another to try and complete as many good deeds as possible before time runs out.

3. School Supply Scramble

Class is in session with this philanthropic activity where your team will be tested by a variety of education-themed teamwork challenges, share a special bonding experience, and support local children in need by competing to fill backpacks with school supplies and donating them to charity.

4. Hardware Harmony

With Hardware Harmony, you and your teammates can have fun, make music, and give back to those in need—all at the same time.

Using tools, parts, and hardware, your group will need to collaborate in order to create musical harmony. Together you’ll collect household items, rehearse, and put on your very own concert before donating everything to charity.

You can find even more ideas in our comprehensive list of charitable team building activities for workgroups.

No matter how you choose to celebrate Random Acts of Kindness Day, the underlying message is universal and timeless: small, thoughtful acts can make a big difference in the lives of others.

Learn more about team building activities that are perfect for Random Acts of Kindness Day.

If you’ve got questions about charitable team building activities you can do to celebrate Random Acts of Kindness Day, reach out to an Employee Engagement Consultant.