7 Ways You Can Do Good Today

By Naomi Fink on August 17, 2020

You know that wonderful feeling you experience when you do something good? According to research conducted by University of California Psychology Professor Dr. Sonja Lyubomirsky, that feeling is more than temporary. Doing good can actually have long-lasting effects on your well-being! Want to tap into these benefits? Here are seven ways you can do good right now.

1. Volunteer

There are plenty of ways to volunteer on any given day and perhaps even more opportunities available now due to COVID-19. Need help finding an opportunity that interests you and fits into your schedule? Check out this site created by Penn alumni or reach out to your campus volunteer coordinator.

At Penn this past year, I particularly enjoyed volunteering with the Hillel soup kitchen initiative and visiting sick patients at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Although these opportunities will likely be shifting in light of the pandemic, there are still so many ways to give back and pay it forward. Set aside a few hours each week in your schedule to volunteer — your efforts make a difference to others, and you’ll feel great about yourself too!

Photo provided by Naomi Fink

2. Donate hair 

Have 8-12 inches of hair to spare? Put it to good use by donating it! Organizations such as Locks of Love, Children with Hair Loss, and Zichron Menachem turn hair donations into wigs for children with cancer and other diseases that result in hair loss. Check out their websites, get your hair cut, mail in your ponytail or braid, and enjoy the special feeling of doing something good. I donated 15 inches yesterday!

3. Donate blood 

Not everyone has hair to donate, but all of us have blood. No matter your blood type, the Red Cross is always in need of donations. Drink lots of fluids and schedule an appointment near you today! The whole process takes about an hour and sometimes there are even blood drives on campus to make doing this good deed more convenient for students. Stay healthy and keep an eye out for opportunities to donate blood every few months.

Photo via Pexels

4. Donate clothes 

If you’re like most people, then odds are you have at least five articles of clothing — if not more — sitting in the back of your closet that you haven’t worn in years. Do something good for yourself and for others and get rid of them! Your old t-shirt or pair of jeans may not be your style anymore, but they could really benefit someone else and create more space in your drawers.

Not sure where to donate? Try Goodwill. There are hundreds of donation centers all over the country that would gladly accept your gently-used clothing. If you have fancier or higher-end clothing to donate, you can also give your clothes to Career Wardrobe.

5. Donate money 

Budgeting can be tough and money can be tight when you’re a college student. But if you’re in a financially stable position, consider donating funds to your favorite local charity or global organization. There are people, animals, and movements that could use your support.

6. Write a letter of gratitude

Practicing gratitude has immense well-being benefits and it’s just a nice thing to do. Write a thank you letter to someone you appreciate and read it to them out loud. This single exercise, developed by founding father of Positive Psychology Dr. Martin Seligman, is called a “Gratitude Visit” and can increase your well-being for a number of weeks. Strengthen your relationship with a friend, mentor, teacher, or family member by writing your letter of gratitude today.

Photo via Unsplash

7. The little things

Short on time? Complete what University of Pennsylvania Wharton Professor Dr. Adam Grant calls the “five-minute favor,” by taking just five minutes to do something good for someone else. Five-minute favors might include helping out around the house, washing the dishes, folding laundry, taking out the garbage, picking up trash from the sidewalk, helping friends network, calling or visiting an elderly neighbor, giving your mail carrier a glass of lemonade…you name it! The little things make a big impact.

The COVID-19 pandemic turns concrete plans into looming uncertainties, but one thing is for sure: there is good to be done. No matter what your schedule looks like, try to squeeze in some time to do one or more of these good deeds. As former president of Illinois Wesleyan University Minor Myers Jr. eloquently put it, “Go forth and do well. But even more, go forth and do good.”

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