The world desperately needs some joy.

Life is beautiful, but it’s also challenging. Everyone struggles with something, regardless of their circumstances. By the standards of society, you could be the most successful person on the planet and could still deal with the weight of the human condition. 

Being a person is tough, and that’s why we believe it’s especially important to spread joy and positivity every day. One of the best ways to actively make this pursuit of kindness a part of your life is by taking onThe 30-Day Kindness Challenge.

 

In this article, we will walk you through the ins and outs of The 30-Day Kindness Challenge, how to make it a part of your life, and why it’s important. 

Whether you are just getting started with actively trying to be more kind and generous or well on your way to sainthood, The 30-Day Kindness Challenge is worth exploring. We sincerely believe that the world can be changed in a real, measurable way if everyone makes a conscious effort to show more kindness to those around them. 

Even if you are just putting the tenets of The 30-Day Kindness Challenge into practice in your interpersonal relationships, you can see a major change in your own life and the lives of those you love.

What is The 30-Day Kindness Challenge?

Inspired by a book by Shaunti Feldhahn, the The 30-Day Kindness Challenge is described by the author as “a much-needed movement of kindness led by many influential organizations.” 

The30-Day Kindness Challenge has numerous partners in the form of major faith-based organizations that want to do major good in the world. These partners include the interfaith online networkPatheos, creative conglomerate Sword & Spoon, and a number of other organizations that focus on spreading kindness, love and positivity to others.

The 30-Day Kindness Challenge is, in essence, a prompt to do small acts of kindness towards a specific person in your life each day. 

Author Shaunti Feldhahn also challenges those who want to include more kindness in their lives to make sure to not say anything negative about the person they choose throughout the 30-day period. In addition, the challenge involves actively giving the chosen person sincere words of affirmation each day for 30 days. 

Through these practices, Feldhahn and the other supporters of the movement argue that relationships can be significantly strengthened and you can cultivate long-lasting joy. That’s a hard premise to argue with!

Little acts, big impact.

When you take on The 30-Day Kindness Challenge, you are making a commitment to perform at least one small act of kindness towards a specific person every day for a month. 

This might look different depending on who you are and who your chosen person is. 

You might be buying them a cup of coffee, doing their dishes for them, giving them a lift to work or school, or just spending some quality time with them. What matters most is not the size or spectacle of the act but the heart behind it.

Your daily acts of kindness may feel like chores at first as you embark on The 30-Day Kindness Challenge, but eventually they will begin to become integral parts of your day. 

Like so many good habits, being kind and generous to others becomes hard to stop after you’ve started. Because of this, it is often a fantastic idea to restart The 30-Day Kindness Challenge with someone else after you have finished your first month of increased love and generosity.

 

If you don’t know where to begin with your small daily acts of kindness, you can draw inspiration from those around you that you respect and admire. 

Think of the most selfless and generous person in your life and how they have impacted you. Don’t be afraid to steal their ideas from them! Theft is usually never advisable, but when it comes to doing good to others, being a copycat is a fantastic idea. 

Make a conscious effort to emulate your heroes. 

If there is someone in your neighborhood that you see constantly spending time with their kids, make an effort to do the same. The 30-Day Kindness Challenge is often best done with family members or close friends as the recipients, as these are some of the most important relationships in your life. Strengthening the bonds you have with the people closest to you is a great place to start with your foray into The 30-Day Kindness Challenge. 

After a month of kindness and generosity towards your loved ones, you can expand to others in your life. You’ll be amazed by how The 30-Day Kindness Challenge can strengthen a relationship – it may even turn an acquaintance into a lifelong friend!

Cut the negativity.

The 30-Day Kindness Challenge places a heavy emphasis on kind words only. The old adage, “If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all,” may sound like a cliche at this point, but it rings true. 

Let the prompting of The 30-Day Kindness Challenge influence your talking habits, pushing you away from negativity, complaining and gossip towards honor, praise and affirmation. 

Everyone experiences negative emotions from time to time. It’s not a bad thing to get angry or frustrated, but the way you respond to those emotions is what determines the impact you have. 

 

The 30-Day Kindness Challenge is a prompt to not let those negative feelings control you when they pop up. When you get overwhelmed by frustration with a person, it’s often too easy to start gossiping and complaining to others in an effort to “vent.” 

However, while you’re doing The 30-Day Kindness Challenge and afterwards, it’s extremely valuable to make a conscious effort to avoid feeding into this habit.

Your words have power, and they can make a person’s day or ruin it. Refraining from letting negativity slip out is a great place to start, and it will make The 30-Day Kindness Challenge even more beneficial to you and to others. If you slip up, don’t feel bad – mistakes happen, especially when you are actively working on building a good habit. Just get back on the horse and keep on riding.

Replace that negativity with affirmation.

The final aspect of The 30-Day Kindness Challenge is deliberately speaking kind and affirming words to the person you have chosen every single day. You’ll be amazed by how much of an impact this can make! 

You have probably experienced the pain of insecurity and discouragement before at some point in your life, wondering how others perceive you. When you take the time to actively let someone know how much you love and care for them, you are making a huge difference in their day and their life.

Those feelings of insecurity and discouragement are tough to deal with no matter who you are, and a kind word can change the course of a person's day when they are stuck in their own head. This is part of the amazing power of The 30-Day Kindness Challenge: it allows you to team up with someone else in their daily battles, becoming their friend and ally instead of a passive passerby. 

How Nunbelievable is cultivating kindness.

At Nunbelievable, we are firm believers in the power and impact of The 30-Day Kindness Challenge. Our passion is for coming alongside those whose daily struggles are with hunger. By baking delicious cookies for you to enjoy,we’re working actively to end hunger for the40 million Americans that struggle with it every day. 

Every Nunbelievable cookie you buy directly translates to one meal donated to feed the hungry. This means even yourdaily dessert can be a big act of kindness!

When you take on The 30-Day Kindness Challenge, consider making Nunbelievable cookies your dessert of choice. 

You can meet your daily kindness quota and then some by sharing a big, delicious cookie with someone you love. At the same time, you’ll be helping someone in need get the food they need to survive and thrive. 

When you need a sweet treat to enjoy, it’s tempting to only think of yourself. However, as the old saying goes, sharing is caring. You can make dessert even more meaningful by eating a Nunbelievable cookie. It means your daily dessert doesn’t just satisfy your sweet tooth – it also helps others in a real, practical way. And that’s something anyone can agree with.

The 30-Day Kindness Challenge and Nunbelievable go hand-in-hand like a cookie and a glass of milk. So, consider making both a part of your life -- you’ll be glad you did. 

Sources:

https://www.jointhekindnesschallenge.com/about

https://www.patheos.com/

https://www.feedingamerica.org/hunger-in-america/facts