What is a great random act of kindness that doesn't cost money?

Picking up trash along the route you walk is a kindness to everyone.

Making eye contact and SMILING.

I have a lot of respect for the elderly (unlike a LOT of people these days which is very sad!!) so when I get the chance I do things for them like hold the door or help them reach objects higher up on the shelf at the store, I also like to hear about their past experiences, I think a lot of them really appreciate the opportunity to share things with younger people who are willing to listen..

saying have a nice day to a stranger

Great? Volunteering to go into a collapsed coal mine to dig for surviving, or deceased fellow miners.
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Important? Giving blood.

Nice of you to ask, I hope this helps:
There are so many options. assist a neighbor with chores, put some coins in a parking meter that has run out, Pay a toll for the car behind you, etc. Just look and ask around. Opportunities are everywhere.

Hugs.
Smiles.
Opening the door for people.
Helping them with their groceries...
Many many things..

~+~

A while ago I had a teenage girl come over to me in a coffee shop to tell me how much she loved my hat, and feeling particularly generous that day, I gave it to her - she was well chuffed, it was great. So things like that are good.

a great big hug

Cleaning out rain gutters.

Volunteering where needed (soup kitches, food pantries, etc.), sometimes it is the "behind the scenes" work that is the greatest kindness we can give to others.

Random acts to me means helping someone in need, someone who doesn't ask, like helping someone in a wheelchair reach items on grocery store shelves, holding open a door for a young mother with small children in strollers ...

Visit a nursing home in your area and offer to read to the residents or play games with them.

Call your school and do the same. See if you can help out in the Kindergarten class rooms.

Offer your assistance reaching something on a high shelf for someone in a wheelchair/motorized shopping cart.

Let that person standing behind you in line with a couple of items go ahead of you in line.

Make eye contact with a stranger at the grocery store and say Hi or smile.

My favorite...when I shop a favorite store that has online coupons, I print out 2 and give one away to a random stranger. They are usually 40% off coupons and can really make someones day!

Holding the door for a lady.

Giving up a good parking spot for an elderly or handicaped person.

A smile.

Letting someone merge in front of you in traffic.

Giving motorcyclists plenty of room.

Shoveling your neighbor's walk in the winter.

Bringing a home cooked meal to an older person living alone.

Teaching a child how to make a birdhouse.

Picking up after yourself.

Coming home after a long day at work and doing the dishes for your wife.

How hard can this be?

Good question! And suprisingly simple. Just be a nice person! I am one of those people that calls everyone sir or ma'am, I hold doors for people, things like that. And I am really suprised when people look at me and say 'thank you, no one does that anymore'. When you are on an elevator, ask someone what floor they want and press the button for them. If someone litters, pick it up and toss it in the trash. Help someone change a tire. Always have two pens with you, I love doing this! If someone is looking for a pen, pull one out and give it to them, when they offer it back say "it's OK, I always carry a spare".

Smiling at people instead of frowning or turning away!

saying please & sorry... and "bless you" when someone sneezes, holding a door open, smiling at people, asking people what's wrong when they look hurt... things of that sort, common courtesy :)

A smile

Great question - Simple compliments can be very nice.

helping the elderly cross the road or carrying their shopping

Smiling at everyone!!!

Say hello, please & thank you, have a nice day - all with a smile. Be sincere. Hold the door for those behind you. Don't underestimate how that could help someones day. :)

Smiling!

Leaving a note on a car where you notice a tire is low on air.

Leaving a note on a car where you see the inspection or registration is expired.

Finding a lost cell phone in the street and finding the owner.

A KIND WORD OR WORD OF ENCOURAGMENT.

FREE HUGS!

and lending an ear to someone in need

Twice this week, I let the person behind me in the supermarket jump in front of me because they had fewer items than I did. It was so appreciated by them and the look of amazement on their faces, and their reactions was so worth it! I told the one lady to "just pay it forward" and she smiled and laughed because she apparently knew what that meant.

A few months ago, my boyfriend and I were driving through a neighborhood close to our own, and we noticed a little old lady trying to mow her tall grass in the hot sun. My boyfriend yelled - "Stop the Car!" he then jumped out and offered to mow her grass for her. Now since we were on our way to a Christening, we were dressed up and he couldn't do it at that moment so he told her to stop and he would come back after the Christening to mow it for her - and he did! That is why I love him so very much - he has a heart of gold. Talk about a total random act of kindness!

By the way, I think this was a TERRIFIC question - the best one I've seen on AB! Kudos to you!

Put those shopping carts in the corral that people leave all over the place in the parking lots. Costs you NOTHING but extra steps they were too lazy to take. You are saving someone's car from being dented, the elderly person who would have to fetch it later and the store money since carts are on average: $250.00 EACH. Nobody will thank you for it, or even know you did it, but that's not the point of the act...or is it?

A hug, defiantly.

Have commented already on a couple of answers here already, so going to leave an answer that goes in a completely different direction that I don't think has come up yet.

One of my hobbies is genealogy / family history. Been at it for decades and love it. Have met loads of wonderful people along the way. Often, you'll be living in one place, but your ancestors lived in quite another. But there are a TON of volunteers out there - offering to physically walk into government offices, halls, courthouses .. to get copies of birth or marriage or land or probate records .. then mail them off to you. Others volunteer to find your people in a cemetery near them - transcribe what the stone says - maybe even take a digital photo and e:mail that to you.

Lots of individuals and projects out there - with tons of volunteers working as we speak.

Here's one that fits your question pretty darn closely. It's called .. ready?
RANDOM ACTS OF GENEALOGICAL KINDNESS
http://www.raokg.org

Here's their link to "Volunteers Around the World":
http://www.raogk.org/listing.htm

So yes .. can turn our passions and interests around too .. and "give back" in many, many ways.

my love

giving a smile

Never miss a chance to make someone's day. When I'm in a restaurant and the server is doing a particularly good job, I ask to speak to the manager. The manager usually comes out loaded for bear and dragging the poor server behind to see what he or she did wrong. When they get to the table, I tell them, in front of the server, everything he or she did right and what a stellar job they've been doing. I love to watch the manager's anger and the servers trepidation turn to delight. It usually makes their day and mine too.

Compliments are another great random act of kindness. There is nothing like complimenting a stranger on their smile, or their clothing, or their attitude, or the good job they are doing to make someone's day.

But my favorite is to stop and help a stranger on the road, especially when I am able to fix their car so they don't have to be towed in. One time we stopped to help someone on the road about 350 miles from home, and it was one of my mother's workstudy's with her husband and children with an overheated car. Once I stopped and picked up three elderly women, one of whom was partially paralyzed from polio, and took them to shelter just as the sun was setting on an 18 degree day.

Kindness is one of the most rewarding gifts I can think of, and it just keeps on giving. Anytime I'm having a blue day, I can call up the faces of all those people and it makes me smile.

If a stranger or tourist asks you for directions to some place close, don't tell them how to get there, walk with them until you reach the place they are looking for. I have done this and they were really impressed.

SMILE

Spread the Gospel.

There are so many, and ALL are great.
A bucket is filled one drop at a time!!!

Here are a few you can do NOW:

If you know of a sick or elderly neighbor, give them a hand. Too many properties look like crap because the owner is no longer able to keep up with falling leaves, snow, taking out trash, landscaping, etc. This person may also love a home-cooked meal or a short visit. See if they need a ride anywhere, etc.

Donate old towels and blankets to a crisis shelter or animal shelter.

Donate old clothes and coats (in good shape). There are so many places that have people who can use them.

Adopt or feed a stray animal.

Go through all the cans of food in your cupboard. I'm sure you will find things that you won't ever use. Check the expiration dates! Donate them to your local soup kitchen or food pantry.

If you use coupons, cut ALL of them out and when you go shopping, leave them with the items you won't purchase as a "present" for another shopper.

Walk a neighbor's dog. I did this daily when my neighbor's dog was alive. I miss him :(

There are as many GREAT random acts of kindness as there are people to do them. Be creative. One thing about helping others is that there are soooo many opportunities every day.

Funny thing is as you do more for others, you soon realize how much more needs to be done. There is a side effect though, you WILL soften hearts along the way!

there are many, offer your time to help some one , carry their groceries to the car for them, open the door to help a disabled person out of the car, escort an elderly person to the shops from the car park, give some time to your hospic, hospital, youth group, be a sports coach, unpaid,............... the list just keeps on growing,

Saying "Hey, man, you have a piece of TP stuck to your shoe".

At the dry cleaners or even at a fast food drive-thru, pay for the person's bill that's behind you. Hopefully they will pay it forward!

the best random act of kindness is to pay it forward, you know do something that might make someones day cheer them up when they least expect it.

Rake leaves in the elderly neighbor's yard.
Older folks can find everyday chores very difficult.

HIGH FIVE!

Giving of yourself with your whole heart and mind to those less fortunate. The reward of giving is always a gift that pays it forward.

a sincere smile.

something as small as a smile or just a hello can brighten up someone's day.

To say "thank you".

Rape

Tell somebody that you love them and that you will pray for them.

Advise homeless people to get their act together and find a job.

I try to help anyone I see who needs it. I help my friends who cant afford a baby sitter. I take my kids to the elderly homes to visit. I even go pick people up at the bars and give them rides home just so I know they wont hurt themselves or anyone in the process. That's just a few things. I think that if more people showed kindness in this world we wouldn't have suck a f__ked up society.