What a nice article! I think these planned acts of kindness are much better than random ones. Imagine a world where we spent time thinking about how we could make people around us feel better!

How about calling a friend and telling them how much you appreciate them?

A coffee giftcard is also a great way to brighten someone's morning.

I feel better already.

gameguy

That was a nice article. Of course, putting in that small effort and seeing these people happy over your gesture will liven up your day too!

Aliz

Say no to buying flowers or jewelries..for your gf for valentine...or you're doomed!

mr_oshodi

I give people my undivided attention, They often tell me they feel energized by talking with me (which makes *my* day).

I am always touched when my husband, who is a very busy man, brings me my favorite kind of apple. It is a increasingly rare kind of apple, from northern Anatolia, called in English Arab Girl. To think that while he was cruising through the produce store he saw my Girls and remembered they were my favorite is better to me than any roses.

Emsaidso

My wife recently went out of her way to serve me. Her gift was something she did for me - a simple act of kindness told me so much about the way she felt about me and touched me deeply. To many it would probably seem trivial, but it made my day and then some.

I wrote about it in-length here ([tinyurl.com]) if you'd like to read about the experience. (I don't want to try to summarize it in this comment - I'm afraid I won't do it justice!)

livsimpl

My girlfriend is downstairs taking a nap (works crazy nurse hours)so I took the dog for a walk so she could sleep. While I we were out I thought about that article and I bought her a brownie from starbucks. With a toothpick and a sticky note I made a little flag that says "Love you Suzie from Bernie(dog) and Greg. I can't wait till she wakes up and sees it!

brownsin07

Handwritten snail-mailed cards are unbelievably effective at making someone smile.

Undivided attention is awesome as well. I don't have call waiting, nor do I put people on hold to answer another line.

If someone walks into my office for something that takes more than ten seconds, I forward my phone to voicemail and lock my computer screen. If you have a cellphone, toss it in a drawer or deliberately turn it off.

Deprong Mori

These are great. I'm also a fan of Free Hugs, you can find videos of the idea on you tube.

I can honestly say, as a teacher, that just writing an actually note (not simply "good job") on a kids paper, telling them why I like something can have a remarkable impact on them. I've also done the same for some of my fellow teachers as well, when they made a kid smile, or had a rough day.

Kind words are nice, but a note or even a short email can be remarkably effective!

MrWashy

A few things that I often do to put a smile on a strangers face:

1) I often tell random women "smile, your beautiful"; haven't been slapped yet and they almost always smile.

2) Sometimes I pay for the person behind me in line at a drive through restaurant.

3) I bought $20 worth of Special Olympics 'placards'; the ones you buy in a store and you write your name on them and told the person behind the counter to give one to the next twenty people.

4) Since I live in the great state of MN I often clean off peoples windows after a snowfall.

5) If I get bored when sitting in my car waiting for someone/something I sometimes write notes and put them on peoples windows. Most of the time they probably think someone hit their car or something along those lines but hopefully they put a few smiles on faces.

dahlberg123

I was out buying a burrito today and saw a man use the small ATM machine by the counter. He left and I approached it to get some money out and noticed two 20s still in the machine. I almost took it but decided to do the right thing and tracked the man down to give it back. He looked dumbstruck that anyone would actually return $40. He said "Wow, you're a really great guy!"

That made him feel good and me feel good about myself!

paranoidfox

@dahlberg123: it's really great that you make such an effort to bring little moments of cheer into people's lives, but I would urge you to reconsider the effects of #1 and #5 -- I'm sure #1 gets smiles, but in many cases it may be that sort of nervous, defensive smile that is the automatic reaction to unwanted solicitations from strangers, and doesn't mean that the woman is actually pleased by your comment. I live in an area where men will often call out to you on the street telling you how "beautiful" you are, and while I don't slap them, I will say it usually doesn't brighten my day much. The effect can range from unwelcome/annoying to somewhat threatening (a subtle reminder that you are viewed as an object, potentially vulnerable, etc).

As for #5, people are insanely protective of their cars and furious when anyone touches them, whether to leave flyers/ads or just nice sentiments (and the latter could be viewed as stalker/creepy). I know I would be upset and unnerved if unseen strangers started leaving personal notes on my car. (There was a recent post on Consumerist that highlighted these concerns: [consumerist.com])

Don't stop thinking of those little ways of spreading cheer, but some of your delivery methods may be overshadowing your intended message.

bluewyvern

If I park next to another MINI, I like to pop a quarter in his/her meter while I'm putting change in mine. Cheesy, maybe, but nobody can argue with getting some extra time.

ekasbury