At Aveda Institute Maryland we believe in giving back to our students, our staff, and our community. So, that’s we teach best practices such as random acts of kindness. Doing small acts of kindness is a great way to give back and spread some joy around!

Below we have a list of Random Acts of Kindness (RAK) for 52 weeks. That is one RAK for each week but of course you can do so much more if you want! Let us know on Social Media what RAK’s you did this week!

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Random Acts of Kindness: 7 Week Challenge

Week One:

1. Hold the door open for someone
2. Teach a child something you wish you knew at that age
3. Tip a waitress more than you normally would
4. Spend some time with a senior citizen
5. Smile at a stranger
6. Compliment a stranger
7. Pay for a strangers meal at the drive thru

Week Two:

1. Put a quarter in a meter that is about ready to expire
2. Leave the mail person a thank you card
3. Donate unwanted items to a homeless shelter
4. Donate your unwanted suits to a place that caters to single moms re-entering the work force or older workers re-entering the work force.
5. Smile at the Walmart greeter
6. Mentor someone
7. Carry someone’s bags to the car at the grocery store

Week Three:

1. Walk or run for charity
2. Thank a soldier
3. Let someone go in front of you in line
4. Say “thank you” to the cashier
5. Donate books to a school or library
6. Give your box tops to a school ( found on General Mills products)
7. Start a stamp collection for a child

Week Four:

1. Bring flowers to a co-worker, friend, or someone that may be having a hard time.
2. Tell your family you love them.
3. Donate coupons that have expired to a military family
4. Buy that young mother a gallon of milk, a loaf of bread, and a jar of peanut butter.
5. Pay for an extra car wash
6. Leave quarters to pay for the next persons wash at the Laundromat
7. Instead of asking for gifts ask your friends to do random acts of kindness on your birthday.

Week Five:

1. Donate stuffed animals, coloring books, crayons, stickers, and little toys to the police station to hand out to sick, abused, or scared kids.
2. Donate items to the children’s hospital ( don’t forget about the parents)
3. Buy stamps for the person behind you at the Post Office
4. Send a sunshine box to someone that is sick (put in Kleenex, their favorite cough drops, magazines, and anything that might cheer them up. Don’t forget the get well card)
5. Hand out pennies at a wishing well or fountain. You never know whose wish you may help come true.
6. Surprise someone with a cup cake, muffin, cookie, etc.
7. Pre-stamp some thank you notes and hand them out, letting the recipient know to send it to someone they appreciate.

Week Six:

1. Hide notes in library books for someone else to find.
2. Make or buy hats for kids that are suffering from cancer and donate them.
3. Donate gift cards, restaurant cards, etc. to organizations that help families with critically or terminally ill kids.
4. Stick your change in the Ronald McDonald box at McDonald’s
5. Make care packages and take them to a homeless shelter.
6. Leave your newspaper for someone
7. Donate blood

Week Seven:

1. Donate school supplies to a school or preschool
2. Call a friend and let them know you are thinking about them
3. Volunteer at a school, library, food pantry, etc.
4. Mow the neighbor’s yard
5. Return a shopping cart for someone and save them the trip
6. Take new parents a date night kit. (Movie rental, popcorn, 2 liter of soda, and candy.)
7. Buy a few iTunes gift cards and when you see a teen listening to his iPod give him one.