Challenges
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Quick Win
Doing good deeds for others can be good for you, improving your self-esteem and social connectedness.
Try This Today
- Think about who can use a boost. A friend or family member who’s been sick? A coworker who seems down? A neighbor with a new baby?
- Choose your approach. What can you do for the person today? Drop off a pot of soup, pick up groceries or simply lend an ear. When in doubt, ask!
- Follow through. Do the kind deed. Notice how you feel afterward and write it down in your Joy Journal.
Why
Making someone’s day feels great — and research suggests that it’s good for you. An analysis of 27 studies, reported in 2018 in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, found that performing acts of kindness can improve well-being. That may be due in part to the release of feel-good brain chemicals such as endorphins, as described in a 2015 lecture by Nigel Mathers, M.D., of the University of Sheffield, that was published in 2016 in the British Journal of General Practice.
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