Brighten Someone’s Day

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 could 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 and notice how you feel afterward.

Why

Making someone’s day feels great — and research suggests that it’s good for you. In a two-week study involving 777 adults between the ages of 18 and 57 published in Emotion in 2026, people were randomly assigned to do three nice things for themselves or for someone else each week for two weeks. A control group went about their lives. At the end of the trial, the participants who performed acts of kindness for others reported having less depression, anxiety and loneliness compared with the control group. Those in the self-kindness group, meanwhile, only saw improvements in their depression symptoms. According to the researchers, the results “align with the growing consensus that helping others can foster better psychological health.”