Acts of kindness aren’t entirely altruistic… you also reap many benefits from being nice to others. It boosts feelings of gratitude, happiness, compassion, and optimism. It raises your confidence and your sense of control. It makes you feel like you belong to a community. Whether it be as small an act as helping a stranger with directions, to as large an act as supporting someone through a difficult period in their life, it contributes to both of your well-being. But it doesn’t even stop there—kindness is shown to have a chain effect. When you help someone, it inspires them to help someone else, and so on. Kindness is a powerful thing, and we all have the ability to spread a little bit, to serve ourselves and others, and our community at large.