When I scan through social feeds and news stories I see plenty of reasons to feel hopeless and hardened.
But, when we go cold and hard, we are like ice.
Easily shattered.
Some days, it seems like there’s a never-ending stream of suffering, struggle, injustice, fury, and despair that wants to wash over us. There are plenty of reasons to close your heart and hold onto the love you have.
I’ve been asked, how do you stay committed to adding love to the world?
In a world that is constantly telling you all the reasons to fear, with my whole heart, I believe in finding all the ways to love.
Adding love the world isn’t always easy, so I created this roundup to help you find your unique flavour of love so you can sprinkle that shit everywhere.
1. Be open to exploring all sides of an issue and listen to people with different opinions. Exchange the need to be right with open-minded curiosity.
2. Wake up in time to watch the sunrise, let your heart be touched by the beauty of dawn.
3. Simplify your life {instead of constantly trying to cope with complications}.
4. Spend 30 seconds or more savouring and celebrating good things when they happen {to balance out the neurological negativity bias}.
5. For one full day, commit to making eye contact with everyone you see. Let your eyes beam them a smile.
6. If they are wearing a name tag, use their name when speaking to them.
7. Lead others by living.
8. Only give gifts that are eco-friendly and fair trade.
9. At the beginning of the day, journal this prompt – how will I add love to the world today?
10. At the end of the day, journal this prompt – how did I add love to the world today?
11. Create themed playlists on 8tracks or spotify and send them to friends with a loving message – listen to this when you’re feeling sad / want to dance for joy / need a pick me up / are looking for inspiration.
12. Carry a tiny stuffed animal in your purse to give to the next child you see with tears in their eyes.
13. Go to an animal shelter and offer to pay the fee for the next family who wants to adopt a pet.
14. Make a large batch of a comforting soup {mmmmm … roasted butternut squash}, freeze soup jars, and deliver them to people when they are sick or having a tough day.
15. Fill out the survey for the hotel you stay at or the restaurant you eat at, name someone who contributed to your experience and give them a specific compliment.
16. When someone does something loving for you, spread the news. The more we hear about the love in the world, the better we all feel.
17. Create a random acts of kindness challenge for yourself or your family. For example, on 11-11 {November 11} we’re going to do eleven random acts of kindness, let’s come up with a list of ideas to help us prepare.
18. Cut your long hair and donate it to make wigs for people with cancer.
19. Offer a night of free babysitting to the stressed out mom you know who is taking care of everyone except herself.
20. Offer a night of free babysitting to the stressed out dad you know who is taking care of everyone except himself.
21. Donate blood. Saving three lives in one hour is a pretty good investment of time and cells.
22. Take a bouquet of flowers to a cemetery and give them to the first person you see.
23. Offer to be the designated driver.
24. Coach the team.
25. If you can’t make the event, give your tickets away to someone who would love to go but can’t afford to go.
26. Introduce yourself to the new person and make them feel welcome.
27. Thank your parents.
28. Create a personalized video for someone – use their name, say something loving and send it their way.
29. Bring your stylist her favourite coffee when you go to get your hair done.
30. Buy a dozen roses and give them out to people in a busy intersection.
31. The suit you have that’s gathering dust may help an abuse survivor land a job that liberates her, give it to Dress for Success.
32. The Christmas sweaters you’re never going to wear may help a homeless person stay warm over the holidays. Pack them up and hand them out on a snowy day.
33. Operation Gratitude will take your old phones and ink cartridges and turn them into good things for brave soldiers.
34. Wheels for Wishes will pick up your old car and turn it into a dream come true for a sick child.
35. Cultivate compassion over indifference.
36. Gift Card Giver will match the gift cards you’re never going to use with people who need them.
37. If you borrow their car, fill it up with gas when you return it and leave a thank you note on the front seat.
38. Be kind online – type as though you are with them and speaking to them.
39. Arrive on time.
40. Track down your local ReStore and have them pick up household items you’re not using – you’ll be supporting Habitat for Humanity.
41. Big Brothers and Sisters, The Salvation Army, and Goodwill will take many of the things in your house gathering dust and cramping your style and give them to people in need.
42. If there’s not a place near you to donate, check out Give Back box to see if they’ll ship your stuff somewhere useful for free.
43. Help restore your favourite hiking trail.
44. Smile.
45. Gather up your old sneakers and let Nike turn them into playgrounds
46. Or, One World Running can match your old running shoes with people who need them.
47. Clean the gym equipment after you use it.
48. Adopt a highway.
49. Deliver dinner to firefighters working the night shift.
50. You know that mountain of stuffed animals your kids don’t play with anymore? Stuffed Animals for Emergencies can put them to good use.
51. If you’re like me and have an avalanche of books to sort through, consider opening up a Little Free Library on your front lawn. It will be easy to keep it well stocked.
52. Give away your parking spot.
53. Need to freshen up the style of your glasses? Donate your old ones to Lions Club and they’ll send them off to people in developing countries who need glasses.
54. Switch your seat on the plane so a family can sit together.
55. It takes 10 seconds to sooth a nervous system agitated by fear. It takes 10 seconds to transfer the calm heart-beat of one hugger to another. Give out 10 seconds hugs.
56. Use a reusable water bottle / coffee cup.
57. Learn about a different culture by celebrating one of their holidays.
58. Say hello when you pass people walking on the street.
59. Make a healthy bird feeder.
60. Remember when you were a gamer? You don’t have to let those old games and systems take up space in your media centre anymore. Send them to Get-Well Gamers Foundation and they’ll hook up hospitals.
61. Same goes with those DVDs. Send them to Kidflicks and a child who’s stuck in a hospital bed will be entertained for hours.
62. Acknowledge and appreciate the people who take care of the things – the server who fills your water glass, the janitor who empties the garbage, the mail carrier that delivers your mail.
63. Logon to social media and leave ten kind messages to people you know and people you don’t know.
64. Tell people you care about how they feel.
65. Be real about the hard things in your life. Genuineness breeds connection, support, and togetherness.
66. Ask yourself – how can I love myself right now? Do that thing. Be that love.
67. Write affirmations on cards and scatter them around the city – pin them on community bulletin boards or tuck them into books at the library.
68. When you’re waiting in line, offer a compliment to your fellow line-waiters.
69. Learning how to play guitar / piano / harmonica / banjo / violin was a good idea while it lasted, but now it’s time to pass on your old instruments that aren’t being used. Try the music program in your local school, Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation or The Dreaming Zebra.
70. Invent something that makes someone’s life easier.
71. Write a letter to the author of an article or book you read and tell them how their writing changed your life.
72. Admit you were wrong and apologize.
73. Say no to plastic, bring your cloth bags everywhere.
74. Opt out of gossip.
75. Model the behaviour you want to see.
76. Ask yourself – if I could change just one thing in the world, what would it be. Do that one thing.
77. Love is in the details. Pay attention to them for yourself and for the people in your world.
78. Every time you take your kids to the park ask them to pick up three pieces of garbage with you before you leave {bring gloves or sanitizer if needed}.
79. Clean out your pantry and put everything you’re using into a box and drop it off at your local food bank.
80. While you’re at it, if you have any diapers tucked into a bottom of dresser somewhere, include those too {20% of families struggle to provide clean diapers for their kids}.
81. If you have something to donate and no where to donate it to, post it on your local kijiji site or on freecycle. It won’t be tax deductible, but you’ll be taking care of the earth by reducing landfills and you’ll be helping someone out.
82. Don’t save it in case you need it in ten years, someone needs it now. Choose generosity.
83. Foster an animal. Fur balls need our love too.
84. Make something. Frozen casseroles to deliver to mamas who have just given birth, jewelry for organizations to use for silent auctions, knit hats to give to people who have lost their hair from cancer treatment, or create get well cards to give to people in the hospital.
85. Throw a party. A dinner party, tea party, pajama party, costume party. Invite your guests to bring a snack to share with everyone and ask them to bring the coins that are cluttering up their junk drawer. Nibble on snacks, have some laughs and donate the change to a great charity. My favs are charity: water, the malala fund, kiva, pencils of promise, samasource, the compassion collective, vday, nature conservancy of Canada, we, days for girls, and doctors without boarders.
86. Donate bone marrow.
87. Spread love on social – hello world! Today, I’d like to add a little love to the world by asking how I can make your day better. If there’s something you need, post it in the comments and I’ll do my best to help. If you don’t need anything, scroll through the comments and see if there’s anything you can do to help someone else. Our world needs all the love we can give. This is a good place to start. Let’s have some fun!
88. Take a stand for what you value instead of disengaging with neutrality.
89. Write a love letter. I’m working away at my goal of writing 10,000 love letters, which is another story. But, the love I’ve received back from the letters is astonishing. I’ve received stories of how a few words have made someone’s day and saved someone’s live. Ten minutes of time, a little paper and ink and $1 of postage can add a whole lotta love. If you’re not sure who to write to, head to More Love Letters and read the letter requests.
90. Register to become an organ donor.
91. Eat mindfully. The food you buy and put into your body is a way of loving yourself and the world.
92. Reduce the carbon footprint of the food you eat {hint: meat, cheese, and eggs have the highest carbon footprint}.
93. If you’re an omnivore, be mindful of the living conditions of the animals you eat.
94. If you’re a herbivore, be mindful of the impact of eating produce that’s out of season.
95. Before you eat say thank you to the plants, people, animals and systems that brought your meal to your mouth.
96. Shop mindfully. Every dollar you spend supports something. Are you supporting corporations or small businesses? Does your cash go to owners of sweatshops or etsy artisans?
97. Every single choice you make is an opportunity to add love to the world. Every time you reach a crossroads, ask yourself what is the most loving choice I can make?
98. For one month, don’t produce garbage.
99. For one month, eat a vegan diet.
100. For one month, give away one thing a day.
101. For one month, don’t spend money on nonessentials.
102. For one month, turn the water off when washing your hair and brushing your teeth.
103. For one month, only use non-motorized transportation {walk, bike, skate, scoot}.
104. For one month, go paperless.
105. Walk down a busy street, smile and make eye contact with everyone who looks at you.
106. Write a poem for someone.
107. Buy a coffee for the person behind you.
108. Trace your favorite shirt back to the factory it was made, travel to the place where it was made, thank someone in the assembly line, and ask to hear their story.
109. Spend an afternoon cleaning up a park, river, forest, or street.
110. Heal your trauma. Connect with your favorite healer and dig into the difficult stuff. By healing your trauma, you’re freer to add love to the world. If there’s trauma residue in your nervous system, you’re more susceptible to depression, anxiety, addiction, fearful living, closing your heart, and unconscious reactions. Your healing is vital to the healing of the world.
111. Receive love. By opening your heart to receive love, you’re less likely to shut down and isolate. The more you receive, the more you have to give.
112. Set your intention. We tend to see what we’re looking for. What do you want to see? If you look for reasons to fear, you’ll find plenty. If you look for reasons to love, you’ll find those too. Close your eyes. Take a breath. Whisper to your soul I intend to see love. Open your eyes. See the love. It’s there, I promise.
113. Only buy body products and make up from companies that do not test on animals and do take care of the environment.
114. Prevent loneliness during holidays.
115. Invite your single friends for a Valentine’s Day dessert party.
116. Welcome colleagues with no family to come over for Thanksgiving.
117. Head to your elderly neighbors house to sing Christmas carols and deliver a small gift.
118. On Mother’s / Father’s Day call someone who’s parent has died and let them know you are thinking about them.
119. When you see a child be treated poorly, see them as your own child, and lovingly protect that child.
120. While we’re at it, let’s lovingly take a stand for all the humans in the world, yes?
121. When you see a parent struggling with a child, offer them support hey, I know this is super tough, I remember when my baby wouldn’t stop crying, it was so hard. Would you like me to hold her for a few minutes so you can take a break?
122. If you’re an Amazon shopper, set up an Amazon Smile account. Do all your shopping through smile.amazon.com and Amazon will donate to your favorite nonprofit every time you make a purchase. It took me less than 10 seconds to set it up.
123. Vote.
124. If you shop at other online retailers {Expedia, Best Buy, or 17,000 others} set up iGive, and they’ll make donations when you make purchases.
125. During a winter storm, check in with the seniors in your neighborhood to see if they need anything {icy sidewalks + seniors bones = yikes!}.
126. Leave a love note in your kid’s lunchbox.
127. When you look at someone, beam this thought to them – you are love.
128. Take down the mental walls that divide us by learning how to strengthen empathy.
129. During a smokin’ hot summer day, give cold bottles of water to your mail carrier and garbage person.
130. During a freezin’ winter day bring an extra cup of hot chocolate to give to someone at the dog park.
131. After an event {birthday party, wedding, fundraiser} bring the flowers to a senior’s residence and hand deliver the bouquets to the people the nurses nominate. Or, give them to the nurses themselves – their work is tough and a little color and appreciation would brighten their day.
132. The first duty of love is to listen. Listen to who needs help and what kind of help they need. Sometimes, the most helpful thing you can do begins and ends with listening.
133. Gratitude. Say it. Write it. Gratitude lifts the person giving it and receiving it {25% increase in happiness .. whaaa?! True story. Be grateful}.
134. When you see your child after being away from them exclaim, I’m so happy to see you! And do a happy dance.
135. Help get the stroller down the stairs.
136. Appreciate great service. Like children and dogs, we do well when we’re rewarded for the good. If someone does something well – write a review, tell the manager, refer a friend, send an email, or give them stars.
137. Give them the benefit of the doubt.
138. Learn the names of people in your world – the security guard, receptionist, recycling person, the jockey who pumps your gas, your kid’s friends, your barista, or the clerk who scans your groceries. Use their name when you see them
139. In December, buy a gift for a child who might not receive anything and find a charity who can match up your present with the right person. Check out your local mall for toy drives, Angel Tree Program, Toys for Tots, Operation Christmas Child, or One Simple Wish.
140. When someone is waiting to cross the street, stop driving to let them cross and wave at them as they walk.
141. During Hanukkah, donate your 8th gift to someone who would benefit from your generosity.
142. Check in again. When people go through tough times they often receive a steady stream love and support in the beginning and then it turns into a trickle. Set a reminder in your calendar to check in with the person you know who lost their job, is getting divorced, received a diagnosis, or lost a loved.
143. Create an email address for your kids. When meaningful things happen, send them an email sharing the memory, how it feels to you, what you see in them, how you love them and wishes for the future. Keep the email address secret and give it to them when the time is right. You’ll know.
144. Open the door.
145. On Memorial Day or Veteran’s Day show up to your local celebration or ceremony. Say thank you, bring a flower, make a card, ask how you can help, and listen to their stories.
146. Fill out cards with loving messages and leave them in random places for strangers to find – my favorites are airport bathrooms and on coffee shop tables
147. Give unconditionally.
148. If you are searching for something you buy online, use Goodsearch and a percentage of your purchase will go towards a charity of your choice.
149. Gather some river rocks and decorate them with a positive message. Scatter the rocks on paths and in parks.
150. Hold the elevator.
151. Create care packages filled with snacks and toiletries and keep them in your car. When you see someone living on the streets that need a little care, offer them one.
152. Offer to let them go ahead of you in line.
153. If you found a great coupon and you’re heading to the store to use it, print off a few extra and give them out to the people in the store.
154. Offer to take a photo for the couple who are attempting a selfie.
155. Support kid’s dreams – buy their lemonade, offer advice when asked, donate to their run, gather your bottles for their drive. Let’s show our little ones how supportive and generous our world can be.
156. Let the car in front of you merge in and give them a big wave as they do.
157. Adding love can be as simple as browsing the web. Sign up for Ecosia and some of the money generated by the creepy ads that follow you around will help plant trees.
158. Have an awesome voice? You can help make books accessible by narrating books on LibriVox for people who can’t read.
159. Have a 5 + 5 party for your child’s birthday. If guests want to bring gifts, ask that they bring two five-dollar bills. One five dollar bill will be put in the gift fund {for the child to buy something that’s special to them} and the other five dollar bill will be put in the give fund {for the child will give to a charity that’s special to them}.
160. Buy seeds for plants that thrive in your part of the world and plant them in places people and animals will enjoy.
161. Pick one person who needs a lot of help and give them what you can – help them find a job, a place to stay, friends to talk to, food to eat, clothes to wear, books to read, and resources to use. Support them to get on a different path.
162. Plant a garden in your yard, start a community garden, or volunteer to pick fruit from people who have fruit trees. Donate the produce you grow or collect to your local food bank.
163. Save $500 a month for five years. On the sixth year, take a sabbatical and travel to a developing country to share your skills and knowledge with people who would benefit from knowing how to do what you can do.
164. Become a Big Brother or Big Sister.
165. Gather your community by hosting a MeetUp or having a block party.
166. Calculate your carbon footprint for the year and have an annual tree-planting weekend to offset it.
167. Spend five minutes a day in a loving-kindness meditation, belly breathing, practicing ho’oponopono, praying for others, or sending light into the world.
168. Write a kind note to your server on the back of your bill and leave a big tip.
169. Commit to a month of practicing no shame, blame, or criticism {to yourself and others}.
170. Check to see what companies are Certified B Corporation and buy from them.
171. Use environmentally friendly cleaning supplies {vinegar, baking soda and tee tree oil is a great mix}.
172. Permaculture your backyard.
173. Put your money where your heart is a buy from socially conscious companies {fair trade, eco-friendly, organic, philanthropic}. Refuse to buy products that hurt animals, people, or the environment.
174. Bring love into the lives of animals at your local Humane Society by volunteering to care for them or look into adopting a pet or volunteering.
175. If you’re super smart at something offer to tutor kids that are struggling at the thing you’re good at.
176. Reconsider your consumption. Recycle, compost, conserve water, grow food, install solar panels, switch to public transit, buy an electric vehicle, try to eat mostly local and seasonal food, turn down the heat when you’re not home, and turn off the lights when you’re not using them. Be seven generation sustainable.
177. If you like to work the stock market, only invest in companies that are aligned with your values.
178. Pack your lunch or your kid’s lunch in Bento Boxes to reduce waste.
179. Go paperless. Ask to receive an email copy of your bills and bank statements instead of paper, type directions into your phone instead of writing them on paper, only keep paper copies of what you absolutely need.
180. Switch to Luna pads or a Divacup.
181. Support someone to shine – put the spotlight on them, celebrate their success, encourage their effort, let them take the lead, appreciate their wisdom, give them an opportunity or trust them with a project.
182. Focus on changing the things you cannot accept rather than accepting the things you cannot change.
183. Use your voice to support people whose voices are not heard.
184. Travel mindfully. I love a luxurious resort. But! Some resorts are environmentally toxic. If you’re resorting, look for environmentally friendly options.
185. Plant a tree every time you hop on a plane.
186. Contribute to the community your travelling to by supporting a local cause when you arrive.
187. Diversify. Reflect on your social network. How can you connect with and include people of different ages, sizes, sexual orientation, belief systems, abilities, and cultures?
188. Trust that living in a loving more loving world is worth fighting for.
189. Plant a bee-friendly garden. Oh the bees! They need our love. Let your home be a pollination stop by planning lavender, hyssop, horsemint, asters, blueberry, crocus, raspberry, sage, roses, sweetclover, sunflowers, thistle, alfalfa, or dandelion.
190. Do real life. Commit to being digitally free one day a week. Turn off your phone, shut down your browser, log off social networks, and turn off the TV. Go for a walk with friends, journal, host a dinner party, have a long soak in a steamy tub, light a fire under the stars, lay on the ground and play Lego, go on a date, put your feet in the river … spend time with your glorious humans in your world {including yourself}.
191. Put money in an expired parking meter, make a strangers day by preventing them from getting a ticket.
192. Read ten books written by people who are from a cultural group that is different than yours. Here are a few ideas – Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates; White Women, Race Matters: The Social Construction of Whiteness by Ruth Frankerberg; My Left Foot by Christy Brown; Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde; Yellow: Race in America Beyond Black or White by Frank Wu; Moving Violations: War Zones, Wheelchairs, and Declarations of Independence by John Hockenberry; Brown Skin White Minds by EJR David; How Does It Feel to Be A Problem?: Being Young and Arab in America by Moustafa Bayoumi; Feminism is for Everybody by bell hooks; Gender Outlaws: The Next Generation by Kate Bornstein; The Color of Wealth by Barbara Robles; The World I Live In by Helen Keller
My intention is for this list to support you in adding love to the world in a ways that work for you.
This is a lot, to be sure. Start with one.
Remember adding love to the world can be small and simple.
Just like a seed, its instinct is to grow.
Stefan captured me peaking out of an ice cave.