It’s that simple: good deeds that change the world for the better. “Do it now.” How to inspire people to do good deeds

Good deeds you can do today

Hold up the door when you leave

It would seem a simple rule of politeness, but how many people in a hurry forget about this simple trifle. And the person following you will certainly appreciate the fact that you stopped for a second and held the door for him.

Leave a positive review for your favorite place

We do not skimp on negative reviews. It is worth offending us, and friends from all social networks will find out about it. When everything is fine, somehow we are in no hurry to shout about it at every corner.

If you liked a cafe or some other institution, leave a positive review about it. It will not take you long, and the cafe will acquire several new visitors. And your friends will surely thank you for your advice on a good place where they spent a wonderful evening.

Donate blood

If you were not too lazy to go to the blood donation point once, you have already saved someone’s life.

Try volunteering at a nursing home for a while

Oh, it’s not easy. You need to have a certain temperament in order to spend at least a few hours in a nursing home, where there are mostly elderly people who, probably, burden their loved ones too much or who have no loved ones at all. A few hours spent with them for a conversation or some kind of game will be remembered by them, because for old people it will be a whole event in a series of rather boring days.

Help new neighbors settle in

Are new neighbors moving into your entrance? It would be nice to say hello to them for a start. Offer assistance in moving, perhaps suggest something, answer questions. A few simple steps to help you strengthen good neighborly relations, and maybe even make new friends.

Skip someone in line at the supermarket

If you have a full basket of groceries, and a customer with a single bottle of water is languishing behind you in line, why not skip ahead, especially if you are not in a hurry. I am sure he will not only be very surprised, but also very grateful to you.

Send an unexpected gift to a friend

No need to wait for the holidays. Just in honor of a good mood, send a friend who lives in another city a book or some kind of trinket, but at least just a postcard. It is always so joyful to receive parcels!

Bring something tasty to the office

Why not treat your coworkers to muffins or donuts in the morning? Why not bring a watermelon to the office, for example, and eat it all together? Everyone’s mood will undoubtedly improve.

Help the motorist on the road

If you are an experienced driver and see that a car has stopped on the side of the road with the warning lights on, stop and offer help.

Offer your parking space to an approaching car

Parking near the mall is a real challenge, especially during the holidays. If you are about to leave and, approaching your car, noticed the driver who is looking for a parking spot for himself, indicate to him that you are leaving now so that he can slow down and get in your place.

Make way for the metro, minibus or tram

Here it is not only about the elderly, who, of course, should give way. Give in if you see that it is difficult for the person next to you to stand, he is too tired, he is unwell, or he has heavy bags.

Teach someone what you are a pro

I recently explained to a female photographer how to use Dropbox. It took a few minutes, but she was happy that she could now use such a handy tool. If you’re a pro at something, teach others what you know.

Invite tourists to take pictures of them

If you suddenly see tourists on the street who are trying to photograph themselves at arm’s length, offer them help. Surely no one wants all their photos to be as one: huge faces and tiny sights somewhere in the background in the ear region.

Bring your friends’ pet treat

Do you have meat bones from lunch, and in the evening you go to visit friends who have a dog? Take the bones with you. Friends and their pet will be grateful to you.

Share greens and vegetables from your garden with your neighbor

If you or your parents have a garden and have produced far more greens and vegetables than you yourself can eat, share them with your friends or neighbors.

Share discounts

If you have extra discount coupons that you are unlikely to use, give them to those who need them. Do not store until the last moment to discard later.

These are far from all ideas of small good deeds that can be done regularly without spending a lot of effort and money.

Do good to people

1. Bring your colleagues a cup of coffee or tea.

2. Prepare a nice present for your mom on your birthday. This is also a special day for her.

3. Tell a lonely customer in a store that this or that thing suits her / him very much.

4. Post your school photo on social media. network and mark on it all friends with whom you have not communicated for a long time.

5. Disassemble your closets, take out things that you have not worn for a long time, and give them to orphanages.

6 Help someone climb or descend stairs (especially in snowy weather when many steps are slippery).

7. Like someone’s selfies, even if you hate selfies.

8 Tell the receptionist, receptionist or waiter that you know how difficult his job is, which requires special skills. This is actually so, and few people think about it.

9. Leave a good tip and a note of gratitude for a good job at your favorite cafe or restaurant.

10. Buy food from a street vendor and give the food to the homeless person. You can also buy a water bottle.

11. Talk to a homeless person, hear his story.

12. If you have a friend who recently broke up with a loved one, cheer him up, and also present a card with 10, 20 or more things that he or she could be proud of.

13 Smile at the woman with the crying baby (usually in these situations, people are unhappy with loud crying).

14. Ask an older person how he lived when he was your age – take the time and listen to his story.

15. Watch your parents’ favorite movie or listen to their favorite songs and say a few nice things about it.

16 Stop by school any day and thank your favorite teachers for the time they have spent with you.

17. Say hello to strangers at your entrance (elevator).

18. While standing in line in the store, let a person with a small amount of food (a bottle of water, for example) pass.

19. If you know a person who once helped you – write to him and ask if he himself needs help.

20. When meeting old friends, buy some trinket for them just like that.

20 good deeds that will make the world a better place

• Compliment. Two or three simple words can make someone incredibly happy.

• Let someone talk. You can just listen to the person and help them get rid of bad or sad thoughts.

• Show empathy. Feel what someone else is feeling. This is the simplest and best act of kindness.

• Visit someone. You may not even go to visit, but visit someone by calling him on the phone. Think about your loved ones.

• Ask questions. This is called mindfulness. By asking, you show interest and make the person feel useful.

• Help with advice. No, you don’t need to get into someone else’s life. But, if you see that you can relieve someone else’s burden, take advantage of the situation.

• Inspire someone. You can be a role model for someone. Just say a couple of good words and this person will grow wings.

• Solve the problem of the other. It so happens that for us this is just a trifle, but for someone it is a huge problem. You will not lose anything.

• Tell your loved ones that they matter to you. It doesn’t matter what and how you say it, the main thing is that they understand and feel it.

• Teach someone a useful skill. Surely you know something so important and simple. Share this with others.

• Say “thank you” more often. This is the least we can do for others and make it clear to them that they are doing something extremely important for us.

• Plant a tree. Each growing tree is a huge contribution to the environment. And all you need is a shovel and a sapling.

• Be honest. Honesty will not solve all problems, but it will help others understand that you are trustworthy and that you care about them.

• Respect someone else’s life. Let others be what they want to be and how they see themselves in this world.

• Forgive the one who hurt you. Forgiveness may not be easy, but you will find that it changes absolutely everything.

• Praise someone. Good words motivate more than all the riches in the world. Praise someone and see for yourself.

• Don’t promise the impossible. The loved ones want to be sure that they can count on you. Show them what they can do by keeping their promises.

• Make small gifts. The gift can be a plucked wildflower or a cup of coffee. It all depends not on your money, but on your imagination.

• Love the one you promised. Just let them feel that you are in their life for the right reasons and that you want to be there for them.

• Just be decent. Without doing anything bad, you no longer allow anything bad to exist in this world.

Charity as a way of life

The couple annually spend millions on charity (Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt (

Hollywood couple Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt are perhaps one of the most virtuous. The fact of adoption of three children from third world countries speaks volumes. By the way, in the near future they are planning to adopt another baby. Angie and Brad have dozens of charitable foundations.

In 2006, the couple established their own Jolie-Pitt Foundation, which funds funds for Médecins Sans Frontières programs. Each year, the star couple donate about 25% of their earnings. “I really want to help,” Jolie says of her work. – I do not think that I am anything different from other people, we all want to have a chance for a decent life. And each of us would like to believe that, if he is in trouble, someone will come to his aid. ” According to Angie, Cambodia opened her eyes to what is happening in the world, where she starred in the film “Lara Croft: Tomb Raider.”

In 2005, Angelina Jolie was awarded the UN Humanitarian Prize. And in 2007, she was proclaimed a Goodwill Ambassador for the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. “Working at the UN has changed me a lot. I have met people who have experienced horrors that most of us cannot even imagine. I was struck by their extraordinary strength of mind. Thanks to them, I rethought my life, “the actress admitted in an interview. With a charitable purpose, Angie visited Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Angola, Laos, Thailand and other countries in Asia and Africa. And in 2012, the actress received an Oscar for her volunteer humanitarian work and the creation of charitable centers to help children in third world countries.

Jolie-Pitt’s good deeds include: $ 1 million donation to victims of atrocities in Darfur (Sudan), New Orleans rebuilding after Hurricane Katrina, $ 500,000 donation to emotional and educational assistance to children of Iraqi military personnel (2007), donation $ 2 million for a medical facility for TB and HIV patients (2008), $ 1 million donation to the Pakistani refugee fund (2009), $ 1 million donation to the Haiti earthquake victims (2010).

The actor is known for his active citizenship (George Clooney)

Hollywood hunk with a reputation for being a cynic is not as hopeless as some believe. He is known not only for his roles, but also for his active civic position. He is often referred to as a human rights defender. In 2010, the actor even received a special Emmy award for charity work. The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences presented him with the Bob Hope Humanitarian Award for helping the victims of Hurricane Katrina, the Haiti earthquake and the Darfur conflict. After the 2010 Haiti earthquake, Clooney organized a Hope for Haiti telethon to raise funds to help the victims. This show was also nominated for an Emmy in the Best Special Program category.

The actor is also one of the organizers of the Not On Our Watch Foundation, which raised more than $ 10 million to residents of the Sudanese city of Darfur. According to the UN, there is a genocide of the local population organized by the authorities (since 2003, more than 300 thousand people have died). Clooney regularly visits Darfur, and not alone, but with a film crew, organizes actions to draw public attention to this problem.

Several years ago, he staged a rally outside the Sudanese Embassy in Washington, during which he and his father were arrested for refusing to stop the rally. Clooney called for humanitarian assistance to be provided to Sudan before the situation there reached the limit, and an end to the killing of men, women and children. “I’m just trying to get attention. Stop torturing and starving children. That’s all we ask, – the actor commented on his act. “You never know if you will succeed … We hope we can help solve the problem.” And just recently, he organized another charity event, the winner of which, who made a donation of $ 10 to the satellite Sentinel Project, a non-profit organization (which monitors the situation on the border between Sudan and South Sudan),

The good intentions of the screen star are aimed at solving problems in South Africa (Charlize Theron)

The Oscar winner uses her popularity mainly for the benefit of her homeland, South Africa, taking part in several projects aimed at solving various problems: from poverty to the spread of HIV and AIDS. “Knowledge brings change” – this is the life principle of a Hollywood star. Since 2008, Charlize has been the UN Ambassador for Peace. The actress created the Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project, which raises funds to help African children. Money is made in different ways. For example, selling limited collections of T-shirts and shoes designed by Charlize Theron.

In 2013, the actress was presented with an award at the annual Cinema for Peace dinner in Berlin for services to society. However, Charlize helps not only people, but also animals. Along with her dog Tucker, she appeared on a poster: “You wouldn’t wear your dog’s skin, so please don’t wear furs.” In March 2012, Charlize adopted a boy from South Africa, whom she named Jackson. She dreamed about it for a long time. At the same time, the actress wanted by her example to demonstrate to the public that skin color is unimportant and children should be loved.

Leo an ardent environmentalist (Leonardo DiCaprio)

One of the highest paid Hollywood actors, Leonardo DiCaprio, also spares no money for charity. The handsome star is the head of a charitable foundation whose main task is to protect the environment. The actor helps victims of natural disasters (earthquakes and floods), contributes to the protection of rare animals (for example, tigers), participates in programs to provide drinking water to countries in distress and preserve the biosphere of the oceans. To replenish the fund’s treasury, the actor decided to produce Lion coffee, the raw material for which it is planned to grow in Peru, Brazil, Ethiopia and Haiti. The proceeds from the sale of this eco-friendly product will go to charity.

The singer helps children from poor families (Shakira)

The famous singer is also no stranger to virtue. She founded the charity Fundación Pies Descalzos, which helps underprivileged children both in her native Colombia and throughout Latin America. The UN even awarded Shakira a medal for many years of aid to Hispanic children from poor families. The amount of her donations is simply amazing: in 2007, Shakira donated $ 40 million to help victims of the earthquake in Peru and the hurricane in Nicaragua, in 2010 – $ 660 thousand (a fee for shooting a champagne advertisement) – for the construction of two schools in Colombia and in Haiti.

Shakira is also a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador. She travels the world, urging girls from poor families to get an education so that, as adults, not financially depend on their husbands. She recently traveled on a humanitarian mission to the Indian state of Rajasthan, where only 5 percent of women have an education. Shakira is sure that after her visit, the situation will change for the better. In an interview, the singer admits that she is one of those people who cannot sit idly by, but must do something.

The actor also contributes to the cause of good (Ashton Kutcher)

Kutcher has collaborated with the homeless charity Habitat for Humanity on several occasions. For example, in 2006, he announced that he would donate $ 1 to the fund on behalf of the first 50,000 friends of his MySpace page. Thus, attracting attention and showing that everyone can help those who are left without a home. And in 2010, together with Demi Moore, who at that time was the actor’s wife, the couple created a charitable organization called the Demi & Ashton Foundation. And despite the couple’s divorce, their foundation still exists and is actively fighting human trafficking.

Actresses have long and successfully helped sick children (Chulpan Khamatova and Dina Korzun)

Our celebrities keep up with Hollywood stars. Since 2006, since the foundation of the Gift of Life by the Actresses, they have been helping children with various serious and fatal diseases. Chulpan and Dina organize charity performances, actions, concerts, collecting donations. In various interviews, Chulpan repeatedly said that she was inspired to do this by meetings with doctors who do not leave children alone with terrible diseases, and volunteers who help them.

On the foundation’s website, you can read how much money was raised and donated to sick children. For example, in 2013, 797,860,119 rubles were collected. Khamatova calls herself … selfish, because doing charity gives her incomparable pleasure: “When I see how recovered children are discharged and leave for life, when I look into their eyes and the eyes of their parents, who know that they are not thrown in trouble, my mood rises. It gives me so much love and happiness that no acting tinsel in the form of fame and success can match it. “

Increase your visibility

How can you inspire people to do good deeds? When I started looking for an answer to this question, I was helping the energy company encourage customers to join a program to prevent power outages by conserving electricity during peak hours. This program is based on a tried and true method. Obama administration officials have even called it “the foundation for modernizing the American power grid.”

But like many other great technology solutions, this one has one drawback – people. People need to participate. To attract them, the company sent them a detailed letter describing all the benefits of the program and asking them to call the hotline to participate. Letters were sent, but the phones were silent. Therefore, we advised to change the approach a little. Instead of a hotline, we suggested posting the sheets of records at the mailboxes in the houses where these people live. This increased participation threefold.

Why? We all know that people care what others think of them. We want to appear generous and kind. And we don’t want to look selfish or indifferent. This is an important incentive for good deeds. Therefore, small changes can radically change the situation. For example, replacing the hotline, where no one will ever know that you have done a good deed, to a record sheet on which every passer-by will see your name.

By working with governments, nonprofits and companies, we use the power of our reputation to encourage people to do good. We have a simple checklist for that. And you already know its first element. This increased visibility is to ensure that others are aware of your good deeds.

And I know that many of you are probably thinking, “It can’t be that people think,” Well, now that my good deed is noticed, it will definitely be worth it. “

And you are right. They usually don’t think so. When people make a decision and no one sees them, their thoughts are occupied with their own problems, for example, what to cook for dinner or how to pay all bills on time. But if we make their decision more visible to others, they pay more attention to the opportunity to do a good deed. In other words, our approach is remarkable in that it can activate the natural desire of people to do good, in this case, to prevent power outages.

Let’s go back to visibility. Let me give you another example. It is taken from our experience of working with an organization that increases voter turnout. Before every election, she sends out hundreds of thousands of letters to remind people to vote and motivate them to vote. We suggested adding the following phrase: “You may be called to inquire about your impression of the elections.” This phrase makes your engagement more visible and has increased the effectiveness of emails by 50%. Improving the efficiency of emails has cut the cost of getting an extra vote from $ 70 to $ 40. Visibility is used for similar purposes, such as motivating people to donate blood more often by listing donor names on local newsletters.

Here’s another example. Toyota convinced hundreds of thousands of people to buy a fuel-efficient car, making it so unique … that their good deed could be seen a mile away.

Eliminate excuses

We have all seen people who ignored the opportunity to do good. If they see someone begging on the street, they take out their phones and pretend to be very busy. Entering the museum, they pass by the donation box.

Several years ago, researchers in San Diego worked with the local Salvation Army to find ways to increase donations. The results were pretty curious. When the volunteer stood at only one door, people avoided him and left through the other door. Why? Because they could always say, “I didn’t see the volunteer,” or “I needed something from that department,” or “I parked there.” In other words, there are many excuses. And that brings us to the second item on the list – eliminating excuses.

In the case of The Salvation Army, excuses can be eliminated by placing volunteers at every door. And indeed, when they did, donations increased. But something funny happened after that. The researchers positioned themselves in the parking lot in front of the supermarket and counted people entering and exiting the store, and noticed that when volunteers stood at both doors, people stopped leaving the store altogether. Naturally, they were very surprised and decided to figure it out. And then they found out that there was a third small door in the supermarket, through which garbage was usually taken out, and customers began to leave through it to avoid volunteers.

This teaches us an important lesson. When we eliminate excuses, we need to do it thoroughly, because humans are masters at making them. But sometimes excuses have tragic consequences.

Tuberculosis affects about 10 million people a year, and almost two million of them die. And the problem is people. They must take medicine to get well and not infect others. For several years, we have partnered with a healthcare startup Kehila to support TB patients during their treatment.

It is important to understand that TB treatment is a very complex process. You must take a very strong antibiotic every day for six months or more. He is so strong that people feel bad about him. They feel sick and dizzy. The urine may be strange in color.

Another complication is the need to go to the clinic about once a week for a new dose, and in sub-Saharan Africa or other places where TB is common, this means very long distances, congested and slow public transport, and possibly a poorly functioning clinic. … I have to leave work for half a day every week. However, you cannot afford to lose it.

Everything is further complicated by the fact that tuberculosis is a terrible stigma, and you are trying with all your might to hide that you are infected with this disease. The scariest stories we hear from women – after all, domestic violence is quite common in those places – who say that they have to hide their visits to the clinic from their husbands.

Therefore, it is not surprising that people do not complete their treatment. Can our approach help them? Make them hold out until the end? Yes. Every day we send them reminder messages to take their medicine, but if we stop there, there are many excuses. “I haven’t seen the message.” Or: “You know, I saw the message, but forgot about it, put down the phone and forgot completely.” Or: “I lent my mom the phone.” These excuses need to be addressed, and we do this by asking patients to log in and confirm that they have taken the medication.

Otherwise, we will send another message. If they don’t do it again, one more thing. If, after three reminders, they still do not confirm the reception, we write about this to the support group, and they call or send them messages to get them back on the right track. No excuses. Our approach using various behavioral techniques, including, as you may have noticed, the principle of visibility, was very effective. Patients without access to our platform were three times more likely to quit.

Communicate expectations

So you’ve increased visibility, eliminated excuses, but there is also a third factor to be aware of.

If you have been to Washington, Japan or London, you know that there metro passengers always stand on the right side of the escalator so that people can pass on the left. Unfortunately, this is not the norm everywhere, and there are many places where people stand on both sides of the escalator and block it. Naturally, it is better for those around us when we stand to the right and let them pass, but this is not expected of us everywhere.

This is a common occurrence. Sometimes we need to do good, and sometimes we don’t.

This means that people are very susceptible to signals that they need to do good in a certain situation. This brings us to the third and final element of the list – communicating expectations, telling people, “Do a good deed right now.”

There is an easy way to communicate expectations by simply saying, “Look, everyone else is doing good deeds.” Opower sends its customers along with their electricity bills a small tab in which their consumption is compared with the consumption of other people living in houses of comparable size. When people find out that their neighbors use less electricity, they also start using less. This same approach is used for voting, donations, and even hotel towel reuse.

How do you like this example? Here’s another way to communicate expectations. Just say “Do a good deed” at the right time. There are many ways to communicate expectations. Just don’t forget about it. That’s all. This is our entire checklist.

Many of you are working on projects with important social implications, and you may need to motivate people to do well. The methods you learned about today will help you with this. These methods do not require additional tools or the development of complex technologies. They only require harnessing the power of reputation by increasing visibility, eliminating excuses, and communicating expectations.

Sources used and useful links on the topic: https://gcshelp.org/ru/novosti/blagotvoritelnost/20dobrih_del_kotorie_mojno_sdelatj_segodnya.html https://Lifehacker.ru/20-dobrykh-del-kotorye-mozhno-sdelat/segod: https://Lifehacker.ru/20-dobrykh-del-kotorye-mozhno-sdelat/segod : /www.infoniac.ru/news/30-dobryh-del-kotorye-mozhno-sdelat-dlya-drugogo-cheloveka-prosto-tak.html https://notagram.ru/20-dobryh-postupkov-kotorye-sdelayut- mir-luchshe / https://domashniy.ru/psihologiya/dobryedela-_eto_tak_prosto/ https://www.pravmir.ru/sdelajte-eto-pryamo-sejchas-kak-vdohnovit-lyudej-na-dobrye-dela