There is something deep within us all that knows it is better to give than to receive.
That is why my heart is always screaming “There’s NO joy like Spreading JOY!” Just like most people, this economy is killing me financially. I can’t seem to get out from under the ever growing snowball of horror as far as getting ahead goes. That does NOT stop me from giving and making a difference. It’s what I do, always has been, always will be.
This need to give inspired me to write 50 Ways to Make a Difference Without Spending a Penny last year. I’m honored to say that it has inspired many whose hearts have the desire to give, but their wallet says NO. My goal with these ideas is to get you to a point that you are keenly aware of ways to make a difference. That you’ll recognize various chances that tend to pop up. I want your heart to soar as you are doing what you can, where you are, with that you have. And, believe me – it will.
EVERY act of joy, regardless of what it is, has limitless possibilities. You may never know just how far your selfless act of joy went.
It is my pleasure to present to you ANOTHER 50 ways of making a difference with OUT spending a single penny!
1. Click on Ads when visiting web sites. – You are already there reading & the owner of the site makes some money off each click, so why not?
2. Blog Comments – Take a few moments and tell the writer of the article if you liked or even disliked what was written. Feed back is always wonderful!
3. If you shop Amazon.com for any reason at all, start with smile.amazon.com & choose Spreading Joy as your Charity of Choice and at NO extra cost to you, they will donate back to us from your purchase! Talk about EASY!
4. Make every phone call extremely pleasant. Even the “Non helping” help desk calls.
5. Post Links to Charity organizational events to your facebook wall or twitter feed. If you can’t donate a financial gift, donate your voice! Do it daily to help promote the event without being asked to.
6. If you know someone is having a rough day, make a video encouraging them to keep going and email it or facebook it to them. I have received a few of these, and LOVE it!
7. Donate your used computer, projectors etc to someone that doesn’t have one. May take some time to research it, but completely worth it. Many single mom’s would love NOT to have to go to a public library to use the internet.
8. Leave a comment below with a way of spreading joy without spending a penny. 😉
9. Establish a monthly “NO Chore Day” for your entire family. Mom – yes, this includes you too. Do something fun with that time. The dishes will wait for you!
10. Invite a friend over for coffee, dessert and a fun time of chatting.
11. Color with some children. Color with YOUR children. Don’t even stay inside the lines. Be adventurous and color outside the lines.
12. Email this list to someone who has a huge heart but is without the financial means to make a difference.
13. Turn off all lights when leaving the room. (Mom’s all over the world will thank you!)
14. Send an encouraging text to let someone know you were thinking of them.
15. Give a HUG – my goodness, just do it! One size fits all, you can’t hug the wrong person and even if you are having an awesome day, a hug will just make it fantabulous!
16. When making homemade bread, double the recipe and give some away.
17. If you have someone’s Instant Message or Skype contact info, leave them a message even if they are off line. They will find it and be encouraged when they log on.
18. Send Ecards to people in your email address book. I love using www.greetums.com and www.sendwisecards.com for this. The possibilities are truly endless. Go, encourage and email smiles!
19. Recently read a book that you loved? Has a friend given you a book that they had published? Write a review and post it without being asked to on your web site promoting it. Every bit of promotion helps. (I’m so far behind on this…I’m working on it!)
20. Surprise your family with a HOT breakfast one morning, instead of the traditional quick milk, juice and cereal as they are running out of the door.
21. Give kind words freely. Honestly, after a day of “you didn’t accomplish this, you made a D on that test, you monthly projections were off by a long shot…blah, blah, blah” WE all need to hear more positive things that we did do.
22. Be generous with the pat on the backs, the handshakes and eye to eye contact. Positive reinforcement here!
23. When my head is on my desk, don’t bother me. Honestly, there is reason.
24. Share confidence! Remind others that they CAN do this. They are excellent at what they do. They are strong and will make it through.
25. When you are sick with a head cold, don’t write. Just don’t do it. Spare us all the whinybrat ickiness and don’t write. ok? (LOLOL, that is a note to myself. I currently have a cold and can’t think of anything to write here and am feeling kind of bratty! Thus the “harshness” of #23. I’m leaving this, but will do a for real #25 and stop writing for the night.)
25. If you see someone in distress, tears or extremely emotional about something. Even if you don’t know them, take a moment to smile and remind them that it WILL be alright. Don’t make light of their situation, but do be encouraging.
26. Return a favor – without being asked.
27. Do not assume – Don’t do it. What you think you might know isn’t necessarily the truth of the actual known fact. You just never know….you know?
28. Wink at random people. Make sure you pass along a huge smile too!
29. Shake hands or some how, some way greet our wonderful Military personnel each and every time you see someone in uniform. Look them in the eyes and say thank you. Make this a rule! I never pass up this opportunity.
30. Take time to smell the roses. You pass them in the store, you pass them in gardens. Take the time to do it. You never know who is watching and how you will inspire them.
31. Write a note for your child(ren) expressing how proud of them you are. Leave it on their pillow or put it in their overnight bag. This is always fun for a lunch box too, especially if your child is young.
32. Be forgiving today. Bury the hatchet and let bygones, be bygones.
33. SLOW down – so you won’t be grouchy! YOU know it’s true. When you are in a hurry every SINGLE thing gets on your nerves and you are grouchy. (Pointing the finger at MYSELF!! I never do things slowly)
34. VOTE – Don’t let this opportunity pass you by.
35. Tell those that you love, you love them. Seriously. Go on….I’ll wait.
36. Designate your company MATCH to Spreading JOY. Many organizations will match your contributions 100 % up to a certain amount. Here are some Corporations that match donations.
37. Attend the party. Seriously. You were invited. The Host is working hard at putting it together! YOU will make someone happy…so GO – – have fun, sit back and ENJOY!
38. When singing in the car, LOUDLY, be aware of the feelings of others – if YOU are not alone. 😉 Make sure its songs they can sing along to.
39. Phone calls – for NO reasons. Love this. Go ahead and make that call. You never know who you will encourage, whose day you’ll make brighter and how that person just might have needed that encouragement at just that moment.
40. Eat Dessert FIRST. You will be a huge spreadingJOY hero to your family when you plan this. Go all out – do ice cream in waffle bowls. Have Reese’s Cup Pie (and invite me over) or Chocolate Cake with Chocolate frosting. Have it first and have lots of fun!
41. Celebrate your UN-Birthday with your family. Make a cake from scratch, using basic ingredients from the pantry. The fun, laughter and the fact that it’s your UN-birthday will have your home filled with great laughter and JOY!
42. Use a gift card that you received for someone else! Wow. HOW selfless is this? You’ll make a difference and it will not have cost YOU a single cent.
43. Share your frequent flyer miles. Do you travel alot? Have an abundance of miles racked up. Offer a night or 2 at a hotel to someone. Let me know that you would be a resource of miles for Spreading JOY.
44. Do not wake up Grumpy. Let him sleep. 😉 (hahahahaha. Ok, that is as old as the hills, but still funny to me.) Seriously. If you wake up grumpy, focus on others, think of the millions of little things that make YOUR life big and keep the ickiness to yourself until it passes. We want to be spreadingJOY not spreadingICK. Check out Confessions of a Cranky Gal.
45. Host an afternoon Tea Party with your child(ren). These will be cherished memories indeed. Before you know it, you’ll be attending the wedding of your princess. Remember, PINKIES up!
46. Be happy for someone else’s success AND help them, in any way, shape or form to be successful.
47. Watch your words. This reminds me of “Sticks and stones will break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” yeah, you remember that rhyme. IT IS NOT TRUE! Your words are powerful! They will leave a mark on people! Either positive or negative. You get to choose! Choose wisely!
48. Help your child(ren) complete an act of joy every day. Starting joyful habits at a young age will instill a kindness that will last a life time.
49. Leave the mole hill small. Do not make a mountain out of it. Trust me, you’ll face enough mountains in your lifetime. Don’t add to it.
50. End on a positive note. I realize this cannot always be accomplished, but it is worth the effort.
51. Leave a sticky note of encouragement on a few of your co-workers computer. Don’t sign it. Just do it.
There you have it! Another 50 ways of making a difference without spending a single penny. I love this stuff. Spreading joy has never been easier.
I know things are tough, but you are tougher. You can make a difference, right where you are, with what you have. Free your heart of guilt because you feel you can not make a difference. You can. Do one thing a day. Just one.
If you loved this article then you’ll absolutely LOVE our book – Spreading Joy Daily! Easy to read with ideas of inspiration for every day and only $7.99! Men, Women and Children can do these things and impact others! Click Here to Check it Out
What are your thoughts?
Make sure you come back and tell me – How are YOU spreading joy?
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Love it. This is great. Thanks. I am going to retweet it now and e-mails to a few people. Thank you.
Terre Thank you for stopping by and encouraging me! Also, thank you for tweeting and emailing this list. In this economy, I want people to know that they can make a difference without breaking the bank!!
Thank you for how you are spreadingJOY my way!!
{{HUGS}}
You hit it out of the park Marie. Fantasic list. I’m going to share it with the Deep Breathers!
Christmas blessings to you!!!
Thank you for commenting and for sharing it with the other deep breathers!! you have an amazing ministry!! big {{HUGS}} for you
Thank you for a fantastic list that is rich with ideas! I found you as a result of a re-tweet.
Spreading joy is often associated with spending money; as the saying goes, Money cannot buy happiness. Providing this list of 50 way (ANOTHER 50 ways…) that are free is a terrific way to spur people on to spreading joy not only within themselves, but to others!
I started to list 1,001 Things that bring me more gratitude over at http://AllAboutGratitude.com however, I have not added to it in a while – thanks for the push!
Be Well.
Paul.
The Gratitude Guru recently posted..Your Gratitude Burst – 2010 12 15
Thank you for commenting! I will have to check out your site and I have followed you on twitter as well. I want others to get their minds rolling and their hearts remembering that they can make a difference and not break the bank. It may take come creative thinking, but it can be done!!
Your gratitude list sounds like my ginormous list of little things that makes my life big. I will be checking it out!
Thank you and pleasure to meet/tweet ya Paul.
{{HUGS}}
Absolutely lovely. Thank you for sharing so many gems. I was just writing about finding blessings in times of disappointment and I think this works on the same principle – generosity is a spirit that does not have to be dampened by financial hardship.
Bless you!
Grace x
It does. and even in through disappointment we can find JOY. We may not always be happy or full of mile wide smiles cause the tears will fall, its just a matter of “when” -but the joy can always be present – deep within.
I love spreading joy – but finances keep me from doing it at the level I desire, so when I post things like this – I’m posting it for myself as well. 🙂
Thank you – big {{{HUGS}}}
@spreadingJOY
Marie recently posted..30 Day Challenge Jan 2011
Spreading Joy should be like a bad cold, CONTAGIOUS! Here’s m note of encouragement to you – keep going! You are reaping a harvest you don’t even realize!
YHVH bless you richly!
Thank you so much!! contagious – love that!!
Thank you for stopping by!! You are doing awesome things right where you are as well!!
You continue to bless me and so many others!! I’m excited for you and where a week with my father will go!! keep going too!!
{{HUGS}}
@spreadingJOY
Wow I didn’t think it was possible, but you can SPREADJOY without spending one cent. And ALL of them were really good ideas. I’m doing my part (see #2) never realized how much this really makes a difference. Thanks for the ideas.
Thanks for sharing your lists of spreading joy. I am going to put a few of these in our church bulletin every week. I can feel the joy spreading. Blessings, Deanne
Here is my link to twitter.
@Gloria – yes!! it is completely possible to make a difference with little to NO resources. I like to use this type of thinking to empower children and ladies that are in shelters and or are not in the ideal situation as well as those that (like me) want to give big, but financially do not have the means to do so!! AND yes, your feedback – soooo important!!
@Deann – whahooo – spreading joy in your church bulletin is awesome!! thank you for telling me! now THAT makes me smile BIG!!! between the 2 lists there are 100, so you could do 2 a week every week. 🙂
thank you both for how you are spreadingJOY heroes!!!
{{HUGS}}
@spreadingJOY
Love this! Going to tweet it right now, and repost it on my own blog sometime soon, too. And of course, I’ll be putting them into practice as much as I can! 🙂
Kate recently posted..All about books!
WoOoW!! that is so touching!!! I was moved to those things you have listed. Truly blessed. I need to read and hear those! A big thank you. I need to have those list on my mind every time. No doubt the God of the heavens will pour out much more blessing on your lap, that you could not even have enough room to contain it. All my blessings to you my dear sweet friend. I love you! You really have a great heart. I just knew I have a friend a real friend to treasure. I will try to the best of my knowledge at heart to give everything as I desire. Huge thanks to you! [[HUGS]]
awe, it is so cute! love it. thanks, think I will print it out and read it again.
Excellent read, as usual…
I got stuck at #11 and just want to spend the rest of the day coloring
I have read and enjoyed both your lists of 50 ways. I enjoyed them both.
I do one thing that I can only do once a year unfortunately. Instead of asking for gifts on my birthday, I give them. I started by giving to family members. This year I tried to find those outside my family that I thought needed a smile and came up with something to give them that smile and that did not cost me anything but time and some thinking.
I love,love, love this!!! Any way you could email me this list? I haven’t quite mastered copy into documents file yet…Love tmvmom1 🙂
I had a family living with me for 4 months last winter. They were having really tough times. The Mom worked odd hours, so I had dinnern with the kids. I encouraged (required) them to come up with 3 good things – things they were thankful for – to list at meal time. Because they knew it was expected, it forced them to think about the positives around them so that they could come up with something to say at mealtime. I saw their negative outlook begin to turn positive and I began to see more smiles, kindness and thankfulness.
Examples & rules: (Can only be thankful for the food being served one time – no other repeats either)
1. Thankful I can breath
2. Thankful my pencil was sharpened today
3. Thankful my fingernails don’t hurt
4. Thankful I can feed myself
I just told them that no matter how bad it gets, there is always something to be thankful for. They are just going to have to get creative about it. It worked and was such a pleasure to watch. Being positive or negative ALWAYS makes a difference in the lives of those around you. One is hopeless, the other offers HOPE! 😀
Hi Marie
This is a great list. I’ve been thinking of
putting a blog up with different links you
can click on. I know breast cancer has one
than there another one for rice. I seen a couple
more in a paper I got that I can list.
All so just about ever state now has free cell
phone with minutes they give to people if they
qualified for them. All so battered women my
be able to get one threw there local police station.
Oh and I love leaving notes around the house for
the kids or finding one on my computer or refig
just saying I love you .
All so I love when our kids send me a message
on FB or an IM.
Another thing with FB some times the pokes
will get a person talking to you. Birth day wishes
is another thing. You wouldn’t believe how this
makes some people happy because it is the only
thing they have for the day.
I think that enough out of me.
Hugs Marie and keep spreading joy
Bonnie Squires
Bonnie Squires recently posted..Because Love is bigger than anything else
Be a hero and grant a wish. Many wishes take nothing but a little bit of time to grant. The first wish I ever granted on Wish Upon a Hero was one from a person that wanted an uplifting email every now and then.
You could also become a living organ donor. It costs you nothing but time and an organ, though you where born with an extra kidney, and it blesses someone with the gift of life. I have been lucky enough to get to know many living donors and I have to say that each and every one of them is AMAZING, and truly hero’s in my eyes.
Wow! This is great! ReTweeting!
Great cause!
Nice ides.
Like it
One more I think is critical:—->>Read the Bible to find out what God thinks about you! You will be amazed at how much he loves you. These will release wells and wells of joy in you. Do it and you will testify!
Keep me in the know if you have a testimony after finding out what God thinks and has planned for you.
Thanks
This list really encouraged me, I might even print it out and put it up on a wall to remind me! Thanx so much for taking the time to write and post this ‘full of joy’ list!
I’d be honored if you did. others can really benefit from that simple act alone!!
Thank you for taking the time to encourage others to even do so by leaving this kind comment!!
{{HUG}}