Random Acts of Kindness for Coworkers: 30 Ideas for Work

Work is where most adults spend most of their waking hours. A small kindness there changes the temperature of a whole room.

You do not need a budget or a team-building day. The best workplace kindness is specific, a little unexpected and aimed at the person, not at being seen. These ideas work in an office, on a shop floor, in a hospital or on a remote team.

Free and quick

Thank a colleague by name for one specific thing they did this week, and copy in their manager.
Give credit out loud in a meeting to the person who actually did the work.
Learn and use the names of the cleaners, security staff and caretakers, and thank them.
Offer to take one task off the plate of someone who is clearly overloaded.
Invite the newest person to lunch or for a coffee in their first week.
Send a short "you handled that really well" message after a difficult call or meeting.
Share your notes, templates or shortcuts with someone who is struggling.
Hold a door, carry a box, refill the printer or the water jug without being asked.
Ask a quiet colleague for their opinion in a meeting, and listen properly.
Write a genuine recommendation for a colleague on a professional network.

Small treats

Bring in fruit, pastries or something homemade for the team on a Monday.
Leave a sticky note with a kind word on someone's monitor or locker.
Buy a coffee for the colleague who always buys for others.
Keep a small jar of sweets or tea bags on your desk for anyone who needs one.
Give a plant to a colleague whose desk is bare.
Pay for a colleague's lunch on a hard day, quietly.

For remote teams

Turn your camera on and say good morning properly at the start of a call.
Send a voice note instead of a text to say thanks; warmth carries better.
Post a public thank-you in the team channel with a specific detail.
Check on a remote colleague who has gone quiet: "How are you really doing?"
Respect time zones: schedule messages for their working hours.
Start a meeting with one minute of good news from each person.

Bigger gestures

Mentor someone junior for 30 minutes a month.
Cover a shift or a deadline for a colleague with a family emergency.
Nominate a colleague for an award or recognition they would never ask for.
Organise a collection or a card for someone leaving, ill or grieving.
Teach a skill you are good at in a 20-minute lunch session.
Stand up for a colleague who is being talked over or treated unfairly.
Remember a colleague's big day (a launch, an exam, a hospital appointment) and ask how it went.
Write a handwritten thank-you card to someone who helped you early in your career.

Tips that keep it genuine

Be specific: "Thank you for staying late to fix the report" means more than "great job".
Kindness up, down and sideways: the most powerful thanks often go to people with the least status.
Do at least one where nobody will ever know it was you.
Do not turn kindness into a performance review. It is for no reason.

Why it matters

A 2018 meta-analysis found a small-to-medium boost to the wellbeing of people who perform acts of kindness (Curry et al., 2018), and experiments show that people who do something kind consistently underestimate how good the receiver feels (Kumar & Epley, 2023). Your kindness lands harder than you think.

Questions

What is a simple random act of kindness at work?

Thanking a colleague by name for something specific, ideally in front of others or in writing to their manager. It costs nothing, takes a minute and is remembered for a long time.

How do I show kindness to remote coworkers?

Use voice and video where you can, post specific public thank-yous in team channels, check on colleagues who have gone quiet, and respect their time zones and working hours.

Can kindness at work feel awkward or fake?

It feels fake when it is vague or done for show. Keep it specific, small and sincere, and do some acts anonymously.

Is there a World Kindness Day at work?

World Kindness Day is on 13 November every year. Many teams use it as a reason to start a habit, such as one specific thank-you per person per week.

Kindness ideas for everyday life. Keep yourself and others safe, offer rather than insist, and respect people's privacy. If you are struggling, see crisis help.