It was lunchtime at Costco and I stopped to pick up my guilty pleasure—a $1.50 hotdog and drink (Diet Coke with a shot of lemonade in it, if you must know). When I succumb to this not-so-healthy meal, pickle relish and mustard are must-haves. The sauerkraut that disappeared during Covid days I can do without, but the chopped onions…oh, how I mourn their absence from the condiment counter.
Dressed dog in hand, I was squeezing toward a table when I spied someone with onions. She must have seen the startle and flash of green envy in my eyes. “Here, have some. You have to ask at the counter but they don’t always have them.” I liberally sprinkled from the offered cup and thanked her profusely. A random Thursday afternoon was brightened by the kindness of a woman I didn’t know. The unexpected incident made it into my gratitude journal that night.
The Greater Good Science Center at UC Berkeley defines generosity as prioritizing the needs of others, often above one’s own. It might surprise you that humans are a generous species given our predilection for reporting our worst actions in the news. We were brought up with negative beliefs about human nature. But it makes sense that prosocial behavior is wired in because it’s unlikely we’d have survived as a species without it. Heck, if chimpanzees, birds, rats, bees, and vampire bats exhibit generosity, why wouldn’t we? Individual good is also good for the collective—and the giver.
Of course there are large acts of kindness but it doesn’t take much to boost someone’s spirits. An unexpected offer, a hello or compliment, offering your shopping cart to someone who is going in as you go out, a shared evaluation of the weather/a product/upcoming holidays—all are incidental moments that convey, “I see you” to a fellow human being.
On any given day, we have no idea what burden someone is carrying around with them. Many folks feel unseen for loads of reasons. There’s an epidemic of worry and anxiety about the past and the future, neither of which we control. But spontaneous acts of thoughtfulness bring us smack dab to the present. They are gifts we can freely access, give, and receive. Even better, it tends to be contagious.
There are limitless ways to be generous in the moment. If you step away from your thoughts and focus on what’s in front of you, the perfect opportunity might be there. Here are some examples in the workplace:
taking someone’s finished lunch tray to the dirty dish caddy
saying hello by name to someone you don’t know well
doing any small task like putting water in the coffee maker or loading up printer paper
wishing someone a good day or evening as you walk by
leaving the closer parking space if you’re able bodied and can walk
If giving a moment of joy isn’t enough of an incentive, there are positive effects for the giver as well. Generosity produces feel-good neurotransmitters that prompt an emotional boost—and who couldn’t use that on a daily basis? Other studies show links between generosity and happiness, even physical health.
Your good deed may be paid forward to someone else and/or be conveyed to others as a story. In the face of small kindnesses, even the most cynical among us could decide that humanity isn’t such a lost cause after all. And who knows, one little action by you may be recorded in someone’s gratitude journal.
Find ways of being generous this year. Happy 2025!