Good Deeds
The Strenuous Life is a revolt against the self-indulgent ethos that only looks out for oneself. We exhort men to have noble and good aims and to daily strive after them, even when it’s inconvenient. Virtue, duty, and service over self-gratification. Selfless self-improvement is our mantra. As we seek to become more fit, skilled, temperate, frugal, patient, courageous, resolute, and honest, we strengthen and improve our families, communities, and country.
Good Deeds You Can Do
Write a thank you note
Compliment a stranger
Return a loose shopping cart
Pick up trash
Do the dishes
Take out the trash
Wash the car
Wash the dog
Babysit
Cook a meal
Mow the lawn
Weed the yard/flower beds
Fold laundry
Fix something around the house
Pick up bedrooms
Dust your home
Organize the garage
Teach a skill to someone at work
Teach your children a skill
Clean the toilet
Bake some cookies for the neighbors
Send someone an appreciative message/email at work
Hold the door open for someone
Start up a friendly conversation with your neighbors
Do maintenance on a friend/loved one’s car
Buy some Girl Scout cookies
Leave a note/treat for your mailman
Go on a drive with one of your kids and just talk
Volunteer at your local food bank
Sign up for a river/stream clean-up
Mentor youth through a program like Big Brother, Big Sisters
Donate items to a local homeless shelter
Donate blankets to the newborn unit of a hospital near you
Volunteer to serve a meal at a soup kitchen
Call your mom/dad/grandparents
Volunteer at your child’s school
Volunteer with the Boy Scouts/Girl Scouts
Serve someone in your church
Volunteer with a local environmental club such as the Sierra Club to restore a trail
Become a Volunteer Deputy Registrar and register people to vote
Volunteer at a local nursing home/assisted living
Organize a Strenuous Saturday for your local TSL chapter
Volunteer with a local conservation group to help an endangered or threatened species
Spot someone at your gym and give them pointers/encouragement
Host your friends for a dinner and/or cocktails
Watch a friend’s animal(s) while they’re on vacation
Share a musical talent at church
Teach someone else how to play an instrument
Clean the microwave
Start a book/podcast club
Make a double-batch of something yummy and gift to a neighbor
Buy a bag of good groceries and donate it to your local food bank or shelter
Cut fresh wildflowers and bring them to your local nursing home so the residents can enjoy
Bring your well-behaved dog for a visit at a local nursing home
Hold the door for people behind you
Bring someone less fortunate a plant or some fresh flowers
Make a meal for a friend recovering from surgery or an illness
Babysit for free – parents will always appreciate a much-needed break
Put together a basket of treats for someone who has had a death in the family and deliver it after the funeral when they’ll need extra support
Volunteer for a charity
Instead of buying gifts for your family, agree to donate the gift in monies to a charity of their choice
Pass on your unused monthly bus pass to someone in need
Take your neighbors trash to the curb while you’re taking yours
When in line at the grocery store, let the person behind you go in front of you
Pet sit for neighbors going out of town
Make or order dinner for friends with a newborn baby
Pay for the person behind you at the drive-thru
Help someone who looks lost with directions
Donate blood or volunteer for the American Red Cross
Donate your used clothes and housewares to charity
Take a CPR class – you never know when you might need to use it
Help an elderly person off the bus
Bring your old magazines to a hospital waiting room to make a visitor’s wait better
Write a letter or e-mail to a good friend or family member to let them know how much you value them
Offer to walk a neighbor’s dog once a week
Help a parent who is struggling to get a stroller down or up the stairs
Keep your city clean by picking up plastic bottles and other trash you see around your neighborhood
Visit a nursing home to chat with some of the residents
Smile at everyone you pass on the street
Pass on your books after you’ve read them for someone else to enjoy
If you’ve discovered a great little restaurant or store, spread the word
Let go of an old grudge
Help wrap gifts during the holidays
On a random weekend, surprise your loved ones with breakfast in bed
When you come across a buy one, get one free deal, donate the free product to someone in need
Compliment a stranger
Volunteer to do someone’s grocery shopping for them every two weeks
Leave your server a very generous tip
Feed parking meters that are about to expire
Pick up a large bag of cat or dog food to donate to a local animal shelter
Write a note of appreciation to your mail carrier
Give a lottery ticket to a stranger
Put together a writing kit with stationery, envelopes and stamps, pen and give to hospital/nursing home
Put change in candy and vending machines – or tape a couple of dollars to the machine
Buy a phone card and give to a homeless shelter for them to give to someone
Take flowers to a hospital ward and give them to someone who hasn’t had any visitors
Drop a few coins in an area where children play so they can find them
Let someone merge in front of you during rush hour
Many small, local nonprofits have “wishlists” of items they are currently looking for or always need - Provide 3 of those items
Bring baked goods to your local police or fire station to say thank you
Finish a punch card (for a restaurant, car wash, etc.) and give the “free” one to someone else
Walk for something that is important to you
Give a fast food gift card to someone who is homeless
Put out a bird feeder to feed the birds
Leave a note or a dollar in a library book for somebody else
Donate books to the library
While in a restaurant, pay for the meals at another table
Weed someone’s garden
Make arrangements to pay for a stranger’s gas, water, telephone, or electric bill
Rake someone’s yard
Go to the dry cleaners. Pay for someone’s dry cleaning
Create care packages for the homeless
Pay for movie tickets for a family while at the movie theater
Stop by a street vendor and give the proprietor a $20.00 bill - Tell the proprietor to give free merchandise to the next several customers until the $20.00 is consumed
Buy car wash certificates to keep in your car to use through out the year. - Each time you go, give the attendant two tickets, one for you, and one for the car behind you
Knit something for a friend, family member, or a cause
Attend an event important to your loved one
Mow a neighbor’s lawn
Collect coats to donate
Send a care package to a loved one
Offer someone a piece of gum
Make aromatherapy for someone
Say “bless you” when someone sneezes
Leave coupons at the grocery store by leaving the coupon next to the product that it is for
Straighten things up on store shelves while you browse
Hand out free popsicles on a hot day
Reuse “thought-for-the-day” calendar pages by adding them to each piece of outgoing mail
Leave quarters at the laundromat for others to use
Return shopping carts to their designated area
Share an inspirational quote
Leave a thank you note
Give a balloon to a child
Read to a child
Blow bubbles at the park for kids
Donate your talents
Call everyone you know and tell them you love them
Cheer someone on
Offer a ride to someone who cannot drive or does not have a car
Help someone achieve a goal
Write encouraging messages on sticky notes and stick them in random places like a car wash, vending machine, etcetera
Send expired coupons for military to use on base
Take in someone’s garbage cans
Say a prayer for someone
Take crayons and coloring books to a hospital children’s ward
Put a dollar in the toy section at your local dollar store
Give stickers out to kids you pass on the street
Write a note on the sidewalk with chalk and make someone smile
Collect Box Tops and donate them to a local school
Offer an elderly person, a pregnant woman, a physically disabled person – or just someone who looks tired – your seat on the bus
