How to Increase Your Happiness and Help Others

Excellent! An activity that makes you feel good but is also beneficial to others. I really like this activity but it is probably best described as a challenge. It’s called 5 Acts of Kindness. The challenge is to complete 5 random acts of kindness in one day. If you only make it to four, you don’t get to roll over into the next day, you have to start again. This actually makes it quite challenging and a little bit of thought needs to go into it.

The Guidelines for the Challenge

​They must be things you would not normally do. I am sure there are a whole host of kind things you do for friends every day - but this challenge is about going above and beyond your normal acts.

​Have variety in the acts. i.e don’t use the same act but for 5 different people. Research suggests the benefits of feeling good about it dwindle because it becomes too normal.

​You can do things anonymously - this is not about getting thanks from someone. It's about feeling good that you have helped someone out or brightened their day. 

Try and carry out the 5 Acts all in one day. Research has found that if we do this it has a greater impact on our overall happiness. Set yourself the challenge that one day in a week you will do 5.

​The acts can be big or small and to strangers or friends and family. In fact varying this can help you have more positive social connections rather than just focusing it on one person.

​SOME EXAMPLES

• Make a cup of tea for someone out of the blue
• Donate blood
• Help a friend or colleague with a chore
• Compliment someone on something
• Leave a surprise note for a friend or loved one
• Drop in on an elderly neighbour or relative
• Give something away to someone in need - charity donations
• Invite a friend to dinner

Allow yourself to feel good about doing these kind acts and notice how they improve your mood. Perhaps they even increase your positive social connections. I hope so. Let me know how it goes in the comments. I’d love to hear what acts of kindness you come up with.

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