Kindness in the Workplace: 10 Simple Ways to Show You Care

Research shows that kindness makes you happier. It’s also known to make you feel stronger, calmer, and more energized. Plus, kindness doesn’t just benefit the recipient but also the benefactor.

Here are 10 random acts of kindness to brighten someone’s day—including your own:

1. Buy coffee for everyone on the team. Pick a random day to swing by the local coffee shop and surprise your colleagues by bringing everyone their favorite drink. Sure, it can be a bit of splurge, but you’ll limit the expense if you get coffee for just the members of your team.
2. Share fresh baked goods with the office. When coworkers come into the office, what if there were a selection of donuts and pastries waiting for their arrival?
3. Pack an extra snack. Not all acts of kindness need to be grand gestures. You can just share a snack with one colleague on a day she seems out of sorts. Pack an extra one in your lunch or keep a few in your drawer for such an occasion.
4. Take a colleague out to lunch. What does a lunch really cost when compared to someone’s happiness? For no more than 10 bucks, you could make that person’s day — if not the entire week. Do it on a Monday to help ease him back into the workweek.
5. Extend an invitation. No matter the workplace, it’ll naturally develop circles of friends. If someone often lunches or grabs coffee alone, consider extending an invite to join you and your crew. Most people are too shy or uncomfortable to do it themselves. 
6. Go the extra mile. Offering to help out a coworker is one of those spur-of-the-moment acts of kindness that can go over rather well. Ask someone if she needs you to stay late to get a project done. Or, consider taking a difficult customer off her hands.
7. Run an errand or two. We’ve all been there, staring at a laundry list of things to get done after a day at the office. If it’s on your way home, why not offer to drop a package in the mail or drop a colleague off at the dentist?
8. Mentor a new colleague. Think back to your first few months on the job. Chances are, you felt like a fish out of water. Anyone new to the office probably feels the same. Take a recent hire under your wing and show him the ropes.
9. Dole out a little praise. Not all praise needs to come from leadership to have an impact. Be specific and authentic to make it a real act of kindness.
10. Put it in words. There’s a reason they say, “It’s the little things that mean the most.” So, do something small like swinging by someone’s desk to say good morning or good night. And if you’ve got the time, ask about his evening or his plans for the night. 

Start with one random act of kindness, see how you feel, and go from there.  We’re betting it’ll become a habit that’s hard to break.