Random Acts of Kindness Day is officially observed on February 17. While we like to promote acts of kindness on that day, we thought it would be an even better idea to promote kindness all year long, starting with the very first of the New Year!

Walking into stores immediately after Christmas Day, the first thing I saw was aisles and displays filled with storage containers. Now being a gift basket designer, I’m all about good looking storage containers. Of course, the stores aren’t thinking of me and my other designer friends. Their display of all those containers is all about New Year, New You. Get organized. Get yourself together. Make resolutions and keep them!

While I don’t disagree with self-improvement resolutions, they tend to focus on “me”. Maybe this is the year to focus on others by practicing kindness on a daily basis, starting right now in January. This can mean anything from saying hello as you pass by neighbors that you don’t typically greet, to finishing up those charitable donations you lost sight of last year, to sending a small gift to someone special just because.

Here are 10 more ways to start your New Year of Kindness off right!

• Get in touch with a friend or relative you haven’t spoken with in a while and let them know you’re thinking of them.
• Send a handwritten thank you note for a gift you recently received.
• Donate food or clothing to an organization in your area
• Leave a small flower bouquet on a stranger’s doorstep with a note that says “random act of kindness – Happy Day!”
• Bring bottled water and a snack to a homeless person
• Take time to compliment others for their work or talents.
• Begin using the word “thank you” more often at your work place.
• Invite someone new at work to lunch.
• Take on a new volunteer project.
• Spread kindness through your social media posts.