What Are Random Acts of Kindness & Why Do They Matter

You’ve probably been the recipient of a random act of kindness in your lifetime. Think back to an instance in which someone has helped you out of a tough situation when they could see you were having difficulty or when a friend simply paid you a compliment out of the blue. A sweet surprise like this can really make a difference. Did you also know such experiences can also be good for your health and overall well-being? It’s true. A random act of kindness can be a good deed, caring word, selfless act or small gift. Even a smile can brighten someone’s day. Take a look at some of the benefits of random acts of kindness. 

 

Encourage Gratitude 

 

Doing something nice for someone else can make you feel grateful for your blessings. This is especially true when the recipient of your act is less fortunate than you or in a tough spot. When you realize you’re able to give even the smallest bit of yourself to someone else, it shines perspective on the abundance you have in your life. 

 

Lower Stress

 

Stepping out of ourselves in order to focus on someone else is another great way to gain renewed perspective. Plus, doing good just makes you feel better. It releases feel-good hormones and increases your happiness. Suddenly, your troubles may seem a bit less burdensome. 

 

Improved Mood

 

Numerous studies have shown a positive effect on mood when people engage in random acts of kindness. You’re bound to feel better about life in general when you do good deeds. Improved mood, less anxiety and higher energy levels have all been linked to the performance of random acts of kindness. In fact, research has demonstrated that the pleasure and reward centers of the brain actually light up in those who perform these acts in much the same way as they respond in the recipients. It even has a name, and that’s “helper’s high”. 

 

Less Pain

 

You might even feel physically better when you practice kindness. It’s been proven that endorphins are released in the brain after doing something for someone else. Endorphins are hormones produced in the brain and nervous system. They’re often referred to as natural painkillers for their pain reducing abilities. 

 

Better Relationships

 

When you do something nice for another person, they will naturally recall that act with fondness. Random acts of kindness promote good feelings among people and increase connections. These bonds can lead to better relationships and lasting positive interpersonal results. 

 

These are merely a handful of the rewards that come from doing random acts of kindness. Remember, it doesn’t matter how small the gesture. Doing good always makes a positive difference to both the giver and the recipient. 

Five Must Have Supplies That Should Be Part Of Your Disaster Preparedness

No matter where you live, what your personal situation is, or what type of disasters you may be facing, there are some basic supplies everyone should have on hand “just in case”. Here are five things that you should stock and store at all times to make sure you can make it no matter what live throws at you. 

 

Water 

 

Let’s start with the most important and most urgent item on the list – water. You can make it a surprisingly long time without food, power, and all sorts of other stuff. You can’t make it very long without a reliable source of drinking water. 

 

We’ve become so reliant on our faucets that it’s easy to forget that we should store water for a few days whenever something happens. One of the first things you should do when you’re prepping for an imminent emergency is to store some water. Buy a few bottles or gallons at the store, or fill up containers at home. Keep a water filter, or a little Clorox on hand to keep water drinkable for longer time periods. 

 

Non-Perishable, Ready-To-Eat Food 

 

While human beings can go a surprisingly long period of time without food, involuntary fasting isn’t particularly pleasant. Keep a few ready to eat foods in your pantry at all times including peanut butter, crackers, protein bars, and canned foods that you can eat without heating. It helps to stick with items that you eat on a regular basis, so you can rotate through this food store and don’t risk having it go bad. 

 

In addition, start to stock up if the time of year approaches where natural disasters can occur. Don’t forget to bring some of this emergency food supply with you when you need to evacuate. You can’t always rely on others to provide you with food and stores and restaurants along the way may be closed. 

 

Weather Radio 

 

The next important item that makes it on the list is a small battery-operated weather radio. Keep a set of spare batteries with it as well. This is important because you will need the latest weather and government updates as well as news. Don’t rely on your phone and the internet as your only source for information. The network could go down or overload. This makes an important backup. 

 

Flash Light And Batteries 

 

Things always seem worse in the dark, don’t they? And not just that. It can be downright dangerous to move around outside, or even inside your home without a reliable source of light. Candles will work in a pinch, but they also bring the risk of setting your surroundings on fire. Instead make sure your kit includes several flash lights and spare batteries. Headlamps are particularly helpful when you’re trying to move around get stuff done. 

 

First Aid Kit 

 

Last but not least, let’s talk about a first aid kit. The size of your kit will depend on the size of your family. Start with a standard kit available at your local store and then add any and all medications you and your loved ones take and need. Check this kit and the rest of your disaster supplies regularly to make sure you’re prepared when you need to grab your supplies and leave quickly. 

What Emergency Supplies Do You Need In Your Disaster Kit?

Let me ask you something? Do you have a disaster kit? If not, it’s something you should work on right away. You never know when you’ll find yourself in a situation where you have to manage without power, internet, or the ability to head out to the store to buy what you need. 

 

Food And Water 

 

Store at least a gallon of drinking water per person per day. Aim for supplies that last you three to eight days depending on the situation you’re in. In the case of a major weather event or other natural disaster, it may take a while for rescuers and supplies to make it to your area. 

 

The same goes for food. Stick with non-perishable food items that you can eat without any cooking or preparation required. Protein bars, bread or crackers with peanut butter, nuts, and canned goods are all great choices. Don’t forget about utensils including a manual can opener for your kit. 

 

Medical Supplies And First Aid 

 

If you require prescription medication, stock up as much as you can ahead of time. You don’t want to risk running out. As you put together a basic emergency kit, include some first aid items so you can treat minor aches and pains as the need arises. While you’re at it, throw a few wet wipes and some mouth wash in there. Being able to clean up will make you feel much better. 

 

Clothing And Bedding 

 

If you are getting on the road, or sheltering somewhere outside your home, it’s important to have clothing and bedding to make it until you can get back home. Since many natural disasters can pop up quite quickly, it’s a smart idea to make a small pack of clothing part of your emergency kit. Throw in a couple of pieces of underwear, a pair of pants, a couple of shirts, and you’re good to go. Remember, this isn’t your travel wardrobe. This is the dire emergency stuff you have in your kit “just in case”. 

 

Adding a small pillow, a sheet, and a light blanket is also a good idea. Keep it in your car when the situation warrants it. 

 

Communication 

 

Aside from food and water, communication will be your biggest concern in an emergency event. You need to know what’s going on and you are going to want to get in touch with loved ones. Start with cell phones and chargers. They should be a high priority item that makes it into your emergency at the last minute. You may also want to keep a backup power supply or extra batteries for your phones in the kit. Make sure they are charged as well. 

 

Don’t rely on just your smart phone. Having a weather radio in your kit along with some spare batteries is always a good idea. You should also keep a list of emergency contact information including addresses and phone numbers in there along with some old-fashioned maps. They will come in handy when the wireless system fails, or your phone dies. 

 

Miscellaneous Supplies 

 

Last but not least let’s talk about some miscellaneous stuff that will come in handy. If you have a baby or pet, make sure you have plenty of supplies to keep them happy and healthy. Stock up on diapers, make sure you have a pet carrier and leash, and don’t forget about food and water for everyone, including pets. If you’re traveling or evacuating with a pet, check on places that will allow you to bring your furry friends. 

A small kit with some plastic bags, tarps, duct tape and a few basic tools will also come in handy if you need to fix a leak or broken window. In short, be prepared and ready for anything. 

Survival Food Storage Will Come In Handy During A Disaster

When you are sheltering in place, are planning on staying in a shelter, or even dealing with the possibility of being stuck out on the road, having food and water is your top priority in any disaster situation. You can make it without power, and a lot of creature comforts, but you can’t survive without food and water. 

 

Emergency food storage doesn’t have to be complicated or expensive. In fact, it can be mainly comprised of items your family is already eating. Before you go out and start buying all the water, bread, and milk you can get your hands on, figure out how long you want to prepare for. Having at least a week’s worth of food and water stored up can be a great idea during a natural disaster. Keep in mind that you not only have to ride out the storm itself, but that it may also take extra time before help and supplies can make it to you. 

 

Start with your water supply. Hopefully you will continue to have running water, but don’t depend on it as your only source of drinking water. Buy water bottles, or fill up milk jugs, soda bottles and the likes to ensure you have enough clean water to safely drink for a few days. You can make it much longer without food than without water. This should be your number 1 priority. 

 

Next think about non-perishable food that your family will eat. Choose food that you can eat as is. Crackers and peanut butter are a good choice, as are canned beans, soups, and the likes. Canned tuna or chicken makes for a great protein source. Bread is another good option along with your favourite non-perishable sandwich toppings. Don’t forget about things like granola bars, protein bars, nuts or beef jerky that you can eat right from the package. 

 

If you have a camping stove, or a grill outside, you may also be able to heat and cook some foods. Instant oatmeal, coffee, hot chocolate mix, soups, and even instant rice are great options if you have the ability to heat water when the power goes out. 

 

Last but not least, stock up on some favourite treats like chocolate, chips, pretzels, cookies and the likes. It will make getting through those tough disaster days a little more bearable. 

 

Start with a list of things that you know your family will eat and things you’ll use up even when you don’t need them during a disaster. From there, start to round it out with things that will keep you full and healthy and pick those up as needed. For example, you may eat canned vegetable or chicken noodle soup regularly, but aren’t a big fan of tuna. Keep a small supply of the soups in your pantry at all times (rotating through them as needed), and pick up a few cans of tuna as needed. 

 

Talk to your family about your survival food supply and let them have input into what you should stock and keep as well. It will give them a sense of control and responsibility and of course ensure that everyone is happy with the meals available when things get serious. 

Make An Emergency Preparedness Plan For Your Family

Let’s face it. Sooner or later your family will encounter a natural disaster or similar emergency event that requires you to jump into action to stay safe and sound. Doing so will become much easier when you go in prepared and with a plan. Here are three basic questions that you should ask yourself to formulate an emergency preparedness plan for your family. 

 

Where Will You Go? 

 

The first question you need to ask yourself is where you will go when an emergency arises. Will you stay at home and shelter in place? Will you head out of town and evacuate? If you are heading out, where will you go and where will you stay?

 

These are important questions and you don’t want to make those decisions when you are in the middle of a disaster. Those are stressful times and it can be hard to make smart decisions quickly in those situations. A big part of your emergency preparedness plan should be to think through possible scenarios and then get the information you need ahead of time. For example, figure out what routes you can take to get out of the area, determine where you want to go if possible, and then get the contact information for a hotel or the people you’ll be staying with. 

 

How Will You Stay In Touch? 

 

There is nothing scarier than not being able to get in touch with loved ones during a disaster or emergency event. Just as important is being able to get news and emergency alerts or announcements. Think about how you will accomplish this both while you’re on the road and when you’re staying in your home or emergency shelter. 

 

Making sure everyone has a mobile phone is a great start. Don’t forget that these devices need to be charged. Having chargers, including car chargers with you is a must. An additional battery, or a backup power supply will come in very handy as well. 

 

Be conservative with your device usage to make the battery power last as long as possible. It’s important to talk to your kids about this ahead of a disaster and remind them regularly. 

 

Don’t rely on just your smart phone for news and communication. A backup plan will come in handy when you can’t get a good connection or run out of power on your device. Designate a meeting point or a person that everyone contacts when you can’t get a hold of each other. Have a backup solution for finding out what’s going on like a weather radio. 

 

What Supplies Do You Need? 

 

The more prepared you are, the safer and more comfortable you’ll be when the inevitable happens. Depending on what natural disaster you face, where you live, who is part of your family, and simple things like weather will determine the supplies you need. 

 

Start with the basics you need for survival including food, water, shelter, and medication. Don’t forget about your pets. From there, start thinking about creature comforts like light, entertainment, and the likes. Having a headlamp and a good book can make waiting out a power outage a lot more pleasant. Add a cup of hot chocolate made with a camping stove, hot water, and instant cocoa mix makes it even more pleasant. Be prepared and you’ll greatly increase your chances of making it through the emergency or disaster just fine.

Do You Know What Disasters You Should Be Prepared For?

It doesn’t matter where you live, chances are that sooner or later you’ll face some sort of a disaster that will leave you without power, water, or access to buy more. It could be a natural disaster like a hurricane, snow storm, flood, tornado, or earthquake. Or it could be a manmade disaster that has the power grid failing or requires you to stay put in your home for a few days or even weeks. The world can be a harsh place, but there’s something we can do. We can prepare for the disasters most likely to occur in our area. 

 

Your first step in your own disaster preparedness should be to find out what types of emergency situations you need to get ready for. Take a few minutes to review the types of disasters your area is prone to. This is particularly important for natural disaster. If you live in Florida or the South Easter US coast, you should prepare for hurricane season. If you live in the North East or south of the Great Lakes, you should get ready for big snow storms. If you’re in the Mid-West, or South West, chances are you’ll come across a tornado or two. In California, you may prepare for earthquakes. 

 

Next, think about possible man-made disasters. If you live near a dam, you may need a plan of action for flooding. If you live near a nuclear plant, you should think about a way to get out quickly if something were to happen at the plant. You get the idea. What disasters we prepare for will be different for a lot of us and what sort of emergency plan you have will depend on those variables. 

 

Once you have your list of disasters that you need to prepare for, it may be a good idea to consider if and when you would try to prepare to stay at your home and ride it out, and when it may be time to evacuate. Obviously, those decisions may be outside of your control, such as in the event of a mandatory evacuation, but there will also be plenty of times when the decision is up to you. 

 

Think about what makes the most sense to you and your family. If you are able to stay put, you can take care of issues as they pop up and prevent further damage. If a storm blows out a window, you can board it up and prevent water from coming in for example. At other times, it may be safer and more convenient to get out of the disaster’s way. For those cases as well as mandatory evacuation, think about where you would go. Do you have family or friends you can stay with? If that’s not an option, look into an area you may want to travel to and get the numbers of a few hotels. Things move fast when a storm hits and evacuations are ordered. You don’t want to waste time on trying to make those decisions then and lose out on a hotel room for yourself and your loved ones. Shelters should always be a last resort. Trust me, it’s not the most comfortable place to make it through a disaster. 

Make Cross Sales And Consider Higher Priced Products

The hardest part of selling online is finding customers and getting them to make that first purchase with you. It takes the most time, effort, and nurturing. You have to work hard to build a relationship with these people so they start to like, know, and trust you. Once that’s done, and they buy the product, the hard part is over. Provided your products are good, they’ll be happy to buy from you again and again. Yet so many of us are solely focused on market to new potential customers, when could be increasing our profit margins greatly by making offers to existing customers. 

 

Of course, this is hard when you are first starting out. If you only have one product, you can’t really get your customers to buy something else from you. That’s ok. We all have to start somewhere. I do however encourage you to set aside a little time each week to work on developing a related product. Think about what your customers need next, or what else they could use to help them reach their ultimate goal. Keep adding new related products to the mix while also focusing on bringing in new customers on a regular basis. That’s where steady growth and income happens. 

 

As you launch each new product, you will make more and more cross sales. At least a portion of people who bought product A will also buy product B. Then as you start to market product B outside your current customer list, new people will join the mix and they may be interested in product A. The end result is more sales and more sales per customer with each product you launch. 

 

But that’s not the only thing you can do. If you’re ready to really step up your income, consider adding some high-ticket products. One of the easiest one to put together is a bundle. Once you have a handful of products launched, bundle them together and offer that as your first higher-priced product. Even people who’ve bought one or two of them will jump on the bundle sale when you price it right and especially if you include a couple of exclusive bonuses. 

 

Another great option is to offer coaching or training. This works particularly well for “how-to” products. The initial offer is the eBook or training course. The high-ticket product is time with you where you answer questions and guide them through consuming the information. This can be in the form of emails or instant messages, phone calls, or video conferences. You can set it up as a group coaching where you work with a handful of people at the same time, or individual coaching. 

 

Last but not least, you may want to consider “done for your” services. If your info product is about installing a particular software for example, you can offer an upsell or high-ticket service of installing and customizing it for them. The idea is that your customers go into it with the idea of doing it themselves and once they read your info, they realize they’d rather pay someone to do it for them. 

 

Think about this today and come up with at least one high-ticked priced idea that you can implement over the coming month. Then get it up for sale and start profiting big from your customer list. 

Two Emails You Should Send To Every Customer

As an online marketer, you spend a lot of time and effort writing emails. You email your list, you email your customers, you email affiliates, you email potential JV partners, the list goes on and on. In short, a big part of your online marketing efforts is writing emails. It’s always been that way and it will continue to work that way. Today I want to take a minute to briefly go over two different types of emails that I always send to my customers, and I think you should too. Let’s see if you agree with me by the end of this blog post. 

 

Email #1 – Request Feedback & Testimonials 

 

I like to check in with my customers after a few days to make sure they were able to download the product ok and to see if they have any questions. From there, it’s easy to transition into another follow up email about feedback and finally requesting a testimonial. I find that my customers are more than happy to provide feedback and suggest future improvements. Sometimes that results in an updated product, but more often than not it gives me ideas for additional products to launch in the future. 

 

Now let’s talk about testimonials. You know this type of social proof is important and good testimonials can greatly improve your sales conversions. It took me a while to learn this, but you can’t wait for people to just send you a testimonial out of the blue. You have to ask for it. The best way to do this is face to face. The next best way is to ask for it via email. Write up that email and send it out to your customers. The responses you get back will make your day. 

 

Email #2 – Invitation To Promote

 

A few days after asking my customers for feedback and testimonials, I like to invite them to my affiliate program. Depending on your niche, you may want to tweak the wording on this, but particularly in the business-to-business niche, it’s a no-brainer to try to turn your customers into affiliates. This can work even if you don’t have an affiliate program. Simply ask your loyal customers to help you spread the word. In this age of social media, everyone has an online presence and the ability to send free traffic your way. Why not tap into that? Of course, this works even better with an affiliate program set up so you can pay your audience when they send new customers your way. 

 

Do you agree with me? Are these emails you’re already sending? If not, I hope it’s something you consider adding to the mix. Here’s a quick pro tip. You can create a simple little autoresponder series that goes out as soon as someone purchases your product. You probably already have an email going out that delivers the product. Why not add these two emails? It automates the whole process and you only need to write these emails once but will benefit from them for months and years to come. 

The Benefit Of Making Affiliate Offers To Your Customers

You put a lot of time and effort into growing your customer list. Why would you use it to promote other people’s products? I get it. We can feel pretty protective of our hard-won buyers, and we should be. But that doesn’t mean that we can’t promote other people’s products and profit from it. Let me explain. 

 

Think back on a time when you got into a new hobby, or when you first started building your online business. You didn’t learn from just one person, did you? You didn’t buy just one book on woodworking, or classic car restoration. You didn’t subscribe to just one magazine or YouTube channel. Instead, you bought a bunch of stuff. You bookmarked a ton of great sites, blogs, and forums. You subscribed to various newsletters and magazines. In short, you tried to learn as much as you could from as many different people or sources as possible. We all do this, including our customers. Why not help your people find what they need and benefit from it financially? Done right, it’s a good thing for all involved. 

 

It Benefits Your Customers 

 

Making affiliate offers to your list can be beneficial to your customers, provided you do your job to research the products, make sure they are high quality, and pay attention to your audiences’ need. Think of it as vetting or screening the products and services they are considering already anyway, and preventing them with the best options. You can even take it a step further by adding special bonuses or “how-to” instructions as a bonus when they buy through your affiliate link. Another fun option is to approach the product creators to see if they are willing to set up a special coupon for your customers. 

 

It Benefits You 

 

This one is pretty obvious. You are going to make more money. Think about it this way. Your customers are going to buy from other people anyway. You may as well take a cut in the form of an affiliate commission. Think about how it benefits the people who buy through your link if you’re feeling weird about taking money for a product you didn’t create. You’ll quickly get over those thoughts when you start to see the affiliate commissions coming in. 

 

It Benefits The People You Promote 

 

The nice thing about mailing out for a product of another online marketer like yourself is that you’re helping this person out. If you have an affiliate program yourself, you know how nice it is when those surprise sales start coming in. It helps them grow their reach and gets the word out about the work they do. Ideally it will complement yours, making this a win-win situation. 

 

Since you’re helping these fellow online business owners out by promoting them, they are more likely to recommend you and your products and services to their audience. That in turn benefits you again. Don’t you love how that works out?