26 Ideas for Acts of Kindness Week 2026

February 14 through February 20, 2026 is recognized as Random Acts of Kindness Week. The celebration commemorates the way people can step up to make the world a kinder place, one simple act at a time. 

Obviously, the idea of simple actions is deeply important to us here at The Smile Project. In 2011, I posted my first “Happiness is,” a one off statement on Facebook with no intention or idea of what it could become. Over 5,000 days later, I’ve continued to share Happiness every single day and I’ve seen my world change as a result of it. 

We spend a lot of time thinking about not just Happiness but also kindness and my only asterisk, if I may, on RAK Week is that I want my kindness to be intentional. I want my joy to be chosen. I want to live in a way that has me seeking opportunities to serve others not by mistake but because I know my life is better when the people around me are better. 

So as we move into another Kindness Week, I want to encourage you to plan your kindness. Here are 26 ways to spread kindness this week:

Free ideas

• Offer free babysitting to new parents

• Write a recommendation for someone looking for a job

• Go on a “trash walk” to pick up litter in your favorite park

• Email a former teacher, coach, or boss and share what their influence has meant to you

• Sign up to volunteer somewhere in your community this month

• Offer to run an errand for someone you know is going through a tough time

• Tell your best friend, roommate, family member, partner, etc. all the things you love about them

• Leave positive reviews for your favorite small business online

• Call a local nursing home and see if you can volunteer for a day, playing an instrument, running BINGO, or even just visiting with the residents

• Donate unused toys, books, clothes, or games to a local shelter, school, or library

• Leave encouraging notes around your community on bulletin boards, bathroom mirrors, etc.

• Offer to shovel snow for a neighbor (or, some other yard work if you aren’t in a snowy area)

• Donate blood if you are able

A little bit of money ideas

• Send a handwritten card to someone who has made a difference in your life

• Leave change at the laundromat, on a vending machine, or at the self check-out coin catcher

• Take a colleague out for coffee

• Create care kits for people in your community

• Ask the cashier at the grocery store which of the checkout candies is their favorite, purchase their favorite, and then hand it back to them (my personal favorite)

• Cook or bake something to share with a neighbor

• Drop off pet supplies at a local shelter

• Send flowers to a family member who lives alone

• Leave a large tip at a restaurant or cafe

• Donate to a charity of your choice 

• Bring bagels and coffee to the local fire station or hospital

• Fund a classroom supply request through a teacher’s wish list

• Support local artists by purchasing their work and sharing their shop with others

Every day we wake up with a choice of what energy we want to bring into the world. I hope this week you choose love.