Random act of kindness week rolls around once again, and never has there been a year when it’s more appropriate. As we head towards the anniversary of the Uk stay at home orders, what can you do to celebrate random acts of kindness week at work? Why celebrate Random Act of Kindness Week? “We’re told over and over again to be kind — it’s something our parents would remind us of often from a young age. Now more than ever, the media is awash with people showing true kindness, whether that’s through caring for others, raising money for worthy causes or distributing aid. Covid-19 has made us all much more aware of other people’s feelings and made us care more for our community, friends, even next-door neighbours as we all navigate new and challenging times. That’s why this year’s Random Act of Kindness Week has never been more worthwhile to celebrate. “A random act of kindness surprises and delights the recipient because it’s driven by a desire to show appreciation and kindness. It’s something unexpected but is given with real meaning at a time when it is most impactful. Kindness doesn’t have to be reserved for our personal lives either, increasingly it’s something we’re seeing in the workplace between employer-employee. Business leaders can achieve this by focusing on choice, personalisation and relevance in their rewards and benefits strategies. “The biggest lesson any employer should take away from the events of the past year is that their employees matter and their wants, needs and desires have evolved. Random Acts of Kindness Week is a great way to raise awareness of how important it is to show employees how valued they are. Of course, they are valued and are valuable all year round, so keeping staff motivated using rewards, recognitions and random acts of kindness that everyone finds valuable continually is crucial” Chris Ford, Senior Director, Incentives at Blackhawk Network Ideas to celebrate Planning for the future – you might choose a breakout day that’s a chance to down tools and plan fun events for the future for your team. Inspiring is an act of kindness. Start a Slack chat around compliments and encourage leaders to add their moments and comments to team members. Create a ‘secret santa’ style initiative where each person picks out a kind gift for another team member. Set a budget and ask them to add a note as to why they picked it. Eg a notepad for the super organised super mum, a scarf for the most stylish salesperson, a golden egg for the person who’s come out of their shell…. Promote the week on social media and ask your followers what their kindest moment from a stranger was. Giving to food banks or other great local causes – check out https://www.lifehack.org/articles/money/9-charities-worth-donating.html Raising money directly- we recommend Collection Pot as a great method of doing thus between employees and different teams Competitions – set up a competition or an incentive to encourage others to be kind. You could even give each employee a set value to do something kind with themselves and report back. Look into donating used computers or tech to a charity who could repurpose and rehome these for you. Send gift sets to clients and customers that you love as a random act of kindness. Leave treats in order packages during the week Send gifts to clients and customers who have left your business. Leave a sweet taste and ask for their feedback at the same time. You could even win back business! Create experiences and moments of thanks for your team. Maybe that’s wine tasting for your employees virtually – send them the wines and set a date, let them chip off work early, or ask them to spend an hour doing something kind. Write letters to your team. A traditional letter beats so many other acts of kindness. If a letter is too much, send a card or a gift card direct to email, phones or their homes Don’t forget to support those freelance staff or those on furlough. Send reminders of their value to you. Surprise subscriptions. Netflix, food, Disney+ – A subscription is the gift that keeps giving. Let your team have an hour off to speak to a family member they never usually call. Regroup afterwards for the stories! Post navigation How to lead creative people virtually Are long service awards dead?
