Each Day Perform an Act of Kindness Toward Someone
Simple Instructions:
- Each day, perform a simple act of kindness toward anyone in your world — acquaintance or stranger.
- The acts have no size requirement. Small acts are as important as grand gestures.
- The acts need not cost money.
- You must perform the act intentionally to receive the point. You should not give yourself credit for something that was nice but unintentional.
Why Is this Practice Important?
No one is an island, yet it’s easy to feel like you’re alone in the world—like nobody cares about the things that matter to you, like you’re left to take care of things by yourself.
It doesn’t have to be this way. In truth, it would be impossible to get by in the world without the often-unseen kindness of others. Much of what makes our lives better is the small demonstrations of care that people express through their everyday actions: the held door, help with a flat tire, a quarter for the parking meter.
By putting your attention on what others might need, you’ll contribute to this kind of society—a place where needs are met through connection and kindness. The good news is you get to live in that world, too, giving and receiving the benefits of your actions. As you begin, you’ll notice that the more you act with intentional kindness, the more you’ll see it happening around you.
For more observations on this week’s Lifestyle Practice, check out the video on this page with Andy and Michael.
He graduated from UCLA with a BA in philosophy as well as a degree from the Southern California School of Culinary Arts, and feels food is one of the most important parts of a life - it can nourish, heal, and bring people together.
Michael believes health and well-being are as much a state of mind as they are a state of the body, and when it comes to fitness, food, and life in general, he thinks slow is much better than fast (most of the time). Stopping regularly to examine things is the surest way to put down roots and grow.
He knows he will never be done with his own work, and believes the best thing you can do for your well-being starts with loving and working from what you’ve got right now.
