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One of my favorite parts of the holiday season are the small acts of unexpected kindness you often see this time of the year. However, this often saddens my heart. My heart is heavy, not because these acts aren't up to par for me, but because generosity shouldn't be seasonal. Generosity is a crucial ingredient to creating a beautiful culture in our community.
Extending generosity to a stranger can feel odd or even uncomfortable for some, but if you choose to see them as friends you just haven't met yet, you may find yourself a bit quicker to extend unexpected kindness to these 'soon to be friends' of yours.
Santa loves to pay for a strangers dinner when we go out to dinner in Tinseltown. Personally, I love to pay for someone's coffee in line behind me. One of my bestie's carries around $10 Starbucks gift cards in her wallet and hands them out to Moms of Littles if she runs into a Mama who may have her hands a little extra full that day. I love leaving positive reviews wherever I have experienced extra special service. I have been known to ask 'to speak to the manager' at times as well to let them know their employee is doing excellent work.
Simply saying 'Thank you for being here today.' or 'You are doing a great job.' to a cashier or waitress in the middle of a holiday rush or to those working on the actual holiday. These small acts can go a long way to build a culture of generosity in your neck of the woods.
There are so many ways to be kind, show generosity, and extend a compliment to strangers in our community.
- Leave an extra generous tip for a job well done.
- Speak to a manager etc. about exceptional service.
- Offer to carry groceries to someone's car or offer to take their cart back.
- Compliment someone.
- Say 'Please' and 'Thank you'.
- Return your dang grocery cart!
- Leave sticky notes on surrounding cars with an encouraging message.
I know we can go above and beyond this holiday season, but let’s not let the generosity end on December 25th. Let’s commit to making it a meaningful part of our lives all year long.”
Generosity Challenge:
- Pay for someone's lunch or coffee.
- Leave a positive review to someone who deserves it.
- Buy books or supplies for your local school or a classroom teacher you don't know.
- Donate food to a food drive or at your local food bank.
- Compliment someone.
- Leave a tip or treat for delivery drivers or mail carrier.
- Learn your waitress/waiter's name and be kind as you speak to them (use their name).
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