fbpx

15 Ways to Be a Good Human Today

Melyssa Griffin

3 min

POSTED BY

TIME TO READ

02

01

This is my digital home, where I share reflections, teachings, and offerings on self-expression, inner healing, ancient wisdom, and alignment as a pathway to a more meaningful and abundant life.

I’m Melyssa Griffin

HEY THERE, SWEET ONE.

MORE ABOUT ME

POPULAR CATEGORIES

POPULAR LATELY

Business Tips

Grow, scale, and get the open book lessons I’ve learned along the way.

How Your Money Mindset is Sabotaging Your Business (And How to Fix It)

How to Let Go of the Status Quo to Live the Life You Were Meant For

03

Your Dream Life is on the Other Side of Your Scarcity Mindset

04

Why It’s So Damn Important to Heal Your Relationship With Money

TAKE THE QUIZ

Is your business aligned—really?

free quiz!

Inner Work

Because the best way to grow your business is from the inside out.

Just the real stuff from me to you.

Personal

Case Studies

Facts, numbers, behind the scenes, and income reports. I’m sharing it all!

Over 40,000 online entrepreneurs have gone through my programs. 

Success Stories

READ THEIR STORIES

Anjali 

online course STUDENT

TARAH-LYNN

PROFITABLE CREATOR STUDENT

MICHELLE

PINFINITE GROWTH STUDENT

ALORA

EMAIL LIST ACADEMY STUDENT

15 Ways to Be a Good Human Today

You don’t have to be Superwoman to be a good human. Usually, it just means putting in a little extra effort to look out for others and make people feel good. Here are 15 quick, but meaningful things you can do today, to be an even better human (because, let’s face it — if you’re reading this, you’re probably already pretty fantastic).

1. Put your cart back. Instead of leaving it stranded in a parking spot, take the extra 30 seconds to walk it back to the designated cart area.

2. Bring breakfast for your co-workers. A dozen bagels or donuts probably won’t break the bank, but will certainly perk up a morning at work. Bonus points? Go in early and hand-deliver them. It will give you a chance to have a brief, but memorable connection with each person, especially the ones you don’t often see.

3. Leave positive notes. Whether it be a post-it on your spouse’s computer with something you adore about them or a a brief, “go get ’em tiger!” in your kid’s lunchbox, leaving notes is an easy way to share love, even when you’re not there.

4. Say “thank you.” Mean it.

5. Call a friend or family member you haven’t caught up with in awhile. One of my close friends called me out-of-the-blue a few weeks ago and, admittedly, my first thought was, “is something wrong?” Nope. He just wanted to see how I was doing, which meant a whole lot. You have the power to build and revive relationships each and everyday — use it!

6. Say hello when you see your neighbors. I mean, you have to see them all the time anyways, so you might as well make it awesome.

7. Thank cashiers and service people by using the name on their name-tag. My dad does this every time we go out, and I always see the way it makes even the most worn-out cashier perk up a little brighter. We feel recognized and understood when people use our names.

8. Tell your boss that they’re doing a great job. It might seem like the person highest up the totem pole gets the most praise, but really, it can get lonely at the top. Many of the bosses I’ve had were elated and wholly surprised when I told them that they were doing a kick-butt job of leading. Just because they’re a leader doesn’t mean they know how much they rock.

9. Clean up small messes in public eateries. Does the cream + sugar area of your local coffee shop have a few spills from previous customers? Take a napkin and wipe ’em up. It’ll only take you a few seconds, but might mean a lot to busy baristas and coffee-goers.

10. Listen. Sometimes this is all people need. Give them that.

11. Open doors for people. And on that note, glance behind yourself when you go through a door to make sure you’re not accidentally slamming it on the person behind you.

12. Spread gossip…in a kind way. When you hear something kind about a friend, tell them! The other day, my 10-year-old sister was raving about how our brother taught her how to play chess, and what a great teacher he was. I told my brother about her compliments the next time I saw him and he was genuinely happy, telling me that it gave him the extra boost of confidence he needed for a mentoring program he was just about to start.

13. Pick up litter and toss it in the trash. Did someone throw their empty bag of chips on the ground? Just pick it up. Throw it away. You’re a superhero, remember?

14. Support someone. Whether it be a co-worker going through a loss or a friend who’s nervous about starting her own business — let them know that you’re there for them. And in the case of the latter, telling your friend that you support their crazy ideas will go a long way to help make them happen.

15. Put in a good word. Is the lady who always rings up your Caramel Macchiato pretty much the sweetest girl around? Or was your server at dinner totally hilarious and helpful? Tell their manager how much they rocked your world. A little goes a loooong way.

What good will you do today?

p.s. 9 Ways to Make Someone’s Day + 30 Ways to Feel Like You Accomplished Something Today

(photo)

  1. Ursula says:

    Such good little reminders on how to be a better and kinder person. I like how you also included putting a cart away. It takes five seconds and then some poor grocery store worker doesn’t need to run outside in the rain or show and collect them all.

  2. Kati Rose says:

    YES to all of these! We need more kindness in the world and all of these are so simple and don’t take much time or effort. It’s a good reminder how easy it is to spread goodness for all of us.

  3. Samsam says:

    Such simple little things and yet so overlooked by society! These are some great ideas! As a barista, I love when people strike up the conversation with me and use the name on my nametag – it really does bring a smile to your face!
    ~ Samantha
    samsamcherie.blogspot.com

  4. Erin Shelton says:

    Oh! I love this list. Such a great idea to spread niceness to others, a pay it forward mentality.

  5. I love this!! These are all so simple and quick, but make such a big impact on your day – and someone else’s!

  6. I love all of these! And as someone who works in retail, I can’t even express how nice it is to hear #7. Even telling a salesfloor clerk that you helped them makes the day go by faster!

  7. This is fantastic! Today I plan on “Calling a friend or family member you haven’t caught up with in awhile” namely my grandparents. It just takes a moment to show someone you care.

    This reminds me of a book I bought a few months ago – “One Good Deed a Day Journal”. I highly recommend – just a fun addition to have on your desk and be mindful of each day. Read more here: http://www.rosetintedhome.com/one-good-deed-a-day/

    Thank you for sharing!

    xo Rachel

  8. Mika P. says:

    I absolutely love this list. I try to always be kind to everyone, so I do many of the things on this list, but there are some I never thought of- so I’m glad there are other things I can do to potentially brighten someone’s day! I didn’t know using someone’s name in a service position could mean something to them (:

  9. Jessica says:

    All those reminders are finally quite simple but people tend to forget them. Thanks for this list x

    http://www.wild-cherrytree.com

  10. Hata Trbonja says:

    What a great list!
    I love being supportive of a boss. They don’t hear it very often.
    Have a great day!
    Hata

  11. I love these! They’re so easy to implement into daily life. I really like the positive notes – that’s something I’m going to put into practice today.

  12. Briana Luca says:

    This is such a fantastic list and definitely things that are doable! I love this 🙂

  13. Madou says:

    THANK YOU our Superwoman for sharing this 😉 you are really a good human!

  14. Natalie Britton says:

    Love this! Thanks for the morning inspiration 🙂

  15. This post was a great morning inspiration for me. All of these things are doable, and I can see what you mean by how a little goes a long way. Just doing the little things for other people can help brighten their day. Darn it, I wish I had gotten to do #3 though… last weekend I returned a pair of shorts to a guy I like, and that could have been the opportunity for me to leave a positive note for him in the pockets! 🙁

    http://peeintothewind.tumblr.com

  16. its amazing how people forget to do these simple things

  17. Blanca Navarro says:

    This is so awesome! I love it! 🙂 Your blog posts are amazing. You’re so inspiring!

  18. Hsiao-Ting says:

    Great list! My husband does #13 whenever we’re out. Thank you for reminding us to be nice 🙂

  19. Cori says:

    Loved this blog post!
    The #3 “Leave positive notes” and #7 “Thank people by using the name on their name-tag” got my attention.
    I’ll start implementing them today! Thank you Mel ♥.

  20. Spreading nice gossip is the best defense against mean gossip. I try to use it to change the subject, like when someone starts talking about someone else in a not-so-nice way and I’ll just blurt out, “Hey, Sarah was wearing the prettiest dress today!” It’s kind of a nice, indirect way to point out the harshness of someone’s words so they can realize their wrong-doings quietly inside their heads. 🙂

  21. Kayla Hollatz says:

    I seriously love this so much. All simple things but that’s what makes it so great. Great post, Mel!

  22. Lix Hewett says:

    This is wonderful and full of truth and actionable advice – really love it. When I first skimmed it I was like, “I don’t use carts. I don’t have co-workers. I don’t have a boss. I DON’T HAVE A FAMILY!!!” (I amuse myself) but I do 9 sometimes and try to do 3, and there’s a lot I could pick up from this list that would make me feel a little more positive and brighter. So thank you for sharing.

  23. SHE Jenmarie says:

    I love how positive this is! Thanks for the inspiration and reminder to always be kind!

  24. Mel,

    This is a great list, especially because it’s not just the obvious things. I must confess I need to be better about putting my cart back. I LOVE the tip about thanking people at the top because it’s so true, sometimes the positions with the most authority can be the most thankless. What do you do for a living (or am I looking at it now?)

    Brittany

  25. I love that the cart thing is number 1 on the list. It’s probably my number 1 pet peeve 🙂 Where I grew up, we had to put a coin in the cart to get one and had to walk it back to get our coin back. Maybe that would solve the cart issue here…

  26. LOVE THIS! You are such a good human for inspiring the rest of us to be so nice. 🙂

  27. This is awesome thanks for sharing! Great things to remember, especially the litter one, I don’t know why I always get annoyed when people drop their litter but it doesn’t occur to me I can just put it in the bin myself!

  28. Katerina says:

    This is very cool and inspiring! I couldn’t agree more with all those tips, especially the “thank you” one. So obvious, right?

  29. Zoe Diaz-McLeese says:

    Sometimes, the little things make the biggest impact! Thank you for this bit of inspiration for the week. 🙂

  30. Mariana Prazeres says:

    It’s funny, I was having quite a bad day, but after reading your post, I think I’ll go out and be a nice person, that ought to make me feel happy again 🙂

  31. ComaDiary says:

    Everyone should be kinda, on the whole I think, and I was pleased to see that even when I’m in a terrible grump, I still manage two or three of these a day. Giving myself brownie points over here.

  32. So much love for this awesome list! It’s the little things we can do each day that makes be better people. Thanks for the reminder! x

  33. This makes me so happy. My boyfriend is pretty well the most thoughtful human there ever was, and he makes a conscious effort to do many of these things every day. He inspired me to try to do the same. I think laziness often contributes to our lack of thoughtfulness in everyday life. I try to catch myself in moments of laziness, like when I notice my Mum’s dishwasher is clean and quietly shut it to avoid doing her dishes….empty the freaking dishwasher Kayla, it takes two minutes, and it will totally make her day! Thank you for sharing this Melyssa. It seems like every day I lose more faith in the goodness of humanity. All it takes is one random act of kindness to start a domino effect that can really make a difference in so many peoples everyday lives!

  34. Love this! Each item is so true!

  35. Such great advice! 🙂 These things seem so simple, but surprising how much we forget to do. ♥ There’s never an excuse for bad manners.

  36. Laila says:

    This are all great advices, little things that we can put into our daily lives and they will eventually become habits, it will help the comunity and it will help us. Thanks for sharing! xx

    herplaceattheuniverse.blogspot.com

  37. Stacia says:

    This is such a good list, and they’re all such small, easy things to do! Recently I’ve been wanting to experiment more with my hand-lettering so I’ve decided to try and write at least one friend every week and take the time to address the envelope in a fun/pretty way that I think they would like. It’s good motivation, and I know the surprise of snail mail will brighten their day whenever they do get it. It’s been relaxing for me, too, as a selfish bonus. haha

  38. Alicia says:

    Thank you! Very inspiring. I’ll surely try some of these ideas. It’s surprising how small things can change lifes.

  39. I have been known to tell people their kids are good when at the grocery store (especially at Christmas time when most kids are going feral). I keep doing it because it just seemed to make people’s day

  40. Sylvan Zarwell says:

    Being nice and being good are very different things. This is a list of ways to be more pleasant in a world stripped of meaningful interaction. This will not help you in any way to be a moral being.

  41. Colleen says:

    Another way to be a good human is by being kind to animals, especially those in shelters or living on the streets!

  42. Travis Wade says:

    Nothing about any of these is difficult 🙂 You never know who you can influence in a positive way just be doing little things like this.

Keep Reading

For Soulful, Creative Entrepreneurs

For more than a decade I've supported over 40,000 people in my top-rated online courses. Here, I help you create a business that evolves alongside you.

LEARN WITH MELYSSA

Tarah-Lynn

ONLINE COURSE STUDENT

Online PROGRAMs

Anjali

ONLINE COURSE STUDENT

EMILY

ONLINE COURSE STUDENT

Future Current
Podcast

with 

MELYSSA GRIFFIN

Interviews, stories, and advice that explores what it means to create from alignment, trust your inner knowing, and build a life that feels true.

LISTEN NOW

FUTURE CURRENT HAS 750+ 5-STAR REVIEWS! 

LISTEN ON SPOTIFY

LISTEN ON APPLE PODCASTS

THE PODCAST

“Loved how raw and heart-centered it was, every few seconds I would nod my head because it resonated so much. Highly recommend if you’re looking for more purpose, passion and well-being in your life!”

- YunzheZhou

“I love the perspective Melyssa brings to the table. She's so thoughtful and a true champion of others. A real place where we ALL belong at the table.”

- Rolly

“A daily reminder towards greatness... Listening to these podcast episodes are the highlight of my day. It’s my rock and anchor in a chaotic storm of trying to better my life. So so thankful for it!”

- Rosenthorn

If your work looks good on the outside but feels off on the inside, this quiz will help you name why.
Answer a few questions to uncover your alignment score. No matter where you land, you'll receive customized suggestions to help you create a thriving and aligned business.

TAKE THE QUIZ

How aligned is your business—really?

free quiz!