What IS Guerrilla Goodness you ask?
Guerrilla Goodness is intentional, anonymous acts of kindness performed in playful, creative ways for strangers, friends, and family.
It is the power of kindness and joy coming alive for all involved, both the giver and recipient. It’s discovering something about yourself and the world that changes everything, it is about believing and standing in kindness.
Guerrilla goodness is dropping flowers on strangers’ doorsteps, chalking up sidewalks outside of schools with good wishes on the first day of school, leaving quarters in all the gumball machines in town, slipping starbucks gift cards into books at the library for the next reader to find.
I like to think it is where strangers and kindness meet to play!
What does it look like?
select 360p for better viewing
The Story
I am completely obsessed with the idea that random kindness can change the world.
It started small as my mom taught me to do someone’s dishes after a party, as I got older it was paying the toll for the car behind me, making a meal for a new mom or maybe leaving a $20 in the street musician’s guitar case…but it really all began with my sister and her magical way of anonymous giving.
During my poverty days of ramen noodles and no health insurance for my baby, she would hide bills all over my house and leave like nothing ever happened. Packages from L.L. Bean would arrive on my doorstep with a winter wardrobe but no note or bill. It always seemed to appear at just the right moment and when I grilled her, she would never confess.
Over time I realized that kindness came in all forms and I didn’t have to be rich to spread love and joy in the world. Tiny notes left in books at the library, a long conversation with an elderly man in the supermarket, a cold drink for a bum on the street, all of it energized my soul in a way nothing else did or could. There is no selfless good deed but it doesn’t really matter, the world needs it all… I have been on both ends of kindness and decided this was the work of my life. When I looked back, kindness had been calling me all along.
Guerrilla Goodness unfolded on my blog in 2007 after a kindness adventure I did to remember my friend Happyanne whose love and energy is ever present on this earth even though she has gone on. It was ridiculously fun, the sneaking, the rush, the power of kindness mixed with the power of play, all of it was highly addictive for my kindness call and heart. GG has evolved over time and hopefully will spread in ways I can’t even imagine.
The Missions:
(Listed by my favorites, not by date)
guerrilla goodness: the great ding dong ditch w/ mondo beyondo
guerrilla goodness: you are loveable
guerrilla goodness: ding-dong ditchin’
guerrilla goodness: takin’ it to the sidewalks
guerilla goodness: takin’ it to the sidewalks part2
guerrilla goodness: cotton candy kindness
guerrilla goodness: got you in my back pocket
guerrilla goodness: chalk kindness+community=love
guerrilla goodness: candy kids
guerrilla goodness: the great wall of motherly kindness
guerrilla goodness: kindness popsicles
guerrilla goodness: the mothers holiday survival kit
guerrilla goodness: in honor of…
guerrilla goodness: eggawesome!
guerrilla goodness: rubber kindness
guerrilla goodness: sidewalk chalk love (it’s back!)
guerrilla goodness: kid kindness, silly style
guerrilla goodness: coffee love
guerrilla goodness: gone disastrous
guerrilla goodness: happy birthday my friend
guerrilla goodness: you are magic
guerrilla goodness: laundry love
guerrilla goodness: going gourd
guerrilla goodness: we’re lucky to have you
guerrilla goodness: we’re lucky to have you part 1
guerrilla goodness:miami love in technicolor
I’d love to hear about your own guerrilla adventures, and check out the GG Flickr pool to see what other Guerrilla Goodness Gorillas are doing.
Kindnessgirl 
January 14, 2011 at 7:32 pm
Love this…I am going to implement it in our lives. I have 3 boys and homeschool. I think they would love to do this.
Thanks for sharing.
Meagan
January 25, 2011 at 12:30 pm
I love it and your words are poetic and inspiring. Thank you. Thank you. You have given me so many great ideas for my 365 viralkindess project as well.
May 27, 2011 at 2:44 pm
Excellent. Putting a link in my blog.
June 16, 2011 at 10:50 pm
You’ve got my crying! Not because I’m sad, but because this is so close to my heart too. Ripple Kindness Project is my passion and seeing beautiful sites like this just fills my heart with joy. LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT!!!!!!
Lis :o)
Ripple Kindness Project – Australia
June 24, 2011 at 6:48 am
thanks Lisa!! What great work YOU are doing in the world. this kindness gig is pretty sweet huh? love your heart and work in the world my friend!
August 22, 2011 at 12:31 pm
I’ve always tried (tried being the operative word) to practice this kind of goodness. Now that I know what to call it, I’m making it my mission.
Love and Peace,
Oona L.
August 22, 2011 at 1:50 pm
What a wonderful concept! When I was a penniless college student working my way through school, I lost my very last $20 bill on my walk home from work. The next paycheck was not for several days. My then boyfriend, heard me telling my roommate about this and the next morning a $20 bill appeared in the purse I had looked in over and over again, tears streaming, just the night before. He just smiled and told me some story about a money fairy that comes in the night. Several years later we were married. 🙂
August 22, 2011 at 2:39 pm
I’m going to read a guerrilla at the beginning of each day to start off with a happy thought. So, in a way, your blog is an act of random kindness as well.
Thanks!
… and you’ve got me wanting to do an act of random happiness somewhere in the near future as well…
August 22, 2011 at 6:29 pm
You make me sooo happy 🙂
August 23, 2011 at 3:36 am
You are fabulous! Will be implementing random acts of kindness in to my life! x
August 23, 2011 at 4:20 am
I love the idea! This is what my city lack the most — kindness. I always want to do something to change the situation but often feel so powerless when confronting the big social environment. I just read your article of Library Love, and decided next time I borrow something from the library i would do the same.
And I want to thank you for waking up my desire to do good things to other people! (Its been sleeping for a long time.lol)
August 23, 2011 at 5:38 am
thank you for this blog, it’s really nice to find people who feel and think like u. keep up the good work. May God bless u all.
September 8, 2011 at 1:38 pm
it’s been a while since i’ve watched that youtube beautifulness and dang if it doesn’t make me cry every. single. time. you are such a soul, such a dear, dear soul, and the mark you are leaving on this world is one that is deep as love, soft as feathers. thank you.
September 11, 2011 at 2:22 am
I love your project and the variety of ideas!
Just wondering: Could I perhaps post your logo as a link in the sidebar of my blog?
Maria
September 15, 2011 at 4:24 am
sure Maria! i would be honored!
September 11, 2011 at 6:22 am
I just found you today via trialsinfood and this is wonderful! I’ve always believed in the power of kindness in changing the world and am wholeheartedly into this project. 🙂
Thank you!
September 13, 2011 at 10:20 pm
I read the article in O and then went to your website. I am going to start doing some random acts of kindness tomorrow. Thank you for allowing people to see and read of this action….as I always say….actions speak louder than words!
September 14, 2011 at 1:24 am
I saw you through the O Magazine article…. I’ve been dying to find a website like this! I thought there were not many people left in the world that were kind like this. Glad to feel I am not alone. Thank you so much for just being you, and following it passionately.
September 15, 2011 at 12:30 pm
Simply wonderful! So glad I found you via O mag.
September 15, 2011 at 4:28 pm
I remember one difficult day I spent and at the end of which, realizing I had, for some reason, to walk 45 minutes to get home because nobody would pick me up and so on and so on… I sat on the sidewalk and started crying. Within a couple of minutes, of course many people had walked by awkwardly (and wouldn’t I do the same ?) but one man stopped, just asking me if I was feeling ok and gave me a big smile. Minutes later a little boy crossed the street where he was sitting at a café with his parents and offered me a little flower he had picked up.
I try to remember this moment and what they did for me and whenever I see someone ‘in need’ I don’t impose myself but a smile can never hurt and whatever nice comes up to my mind I try to do. Not only does it make the person’s and your day better it also helps you be aware of what is going on around you and yes… : to be smarter but the intelligence of the heart 🙂 HAVE A GREAT DAY !
September 22, 2011 at 6:43 pm
Thank you for the gift of you in the world. I swear…it just got brighter in mine since I found you!
October 26, 2011 at 8:43 pm
I found this and wanted to start RIGHT AWAY! But it was about midnight… 2 days later I read a twist on the Ding Dong Ditch and we decided to go out that night. The twist was a Halloween theme. We dropped bags of candy with notes off to a few houses. It was great fun! Now, when we are having a blah kind of day we either go to this list to get ideas or come up with some of our own. thanks for posting!
March 14, 2012 at 1:14 pm
Hello, I would like to share with you a foundation formed in memory of my nephew, Dale Settle Jr. (age 22). Its called D.A.L.E. (Do A Little Extra) It is a random act of kindness group. Dale was killed doing the ultimate act of kindness.. laying down his life for his friends who were being robbed. Please read about his story, the type of person he was and why we are doing this in his memory. http://www.dalesettlejr.com (find us facebook also, there’s a link on the website).
August 25, 2012 at 8:33 pm
Hi there! I just started a blog with a similar theme, and am looking for other like-minded bloggers to follow. Thank you for the ideas – I love the idea of putting quarters in gumball machines, that’s just plain fun!
September 24, 2013 at 4:18 pm
Your opening line really grabbed my attention. I feel exactly the same way.
February 10, 2014 at 2:01 pm
Hello! I have a blog with the same concept of giving to others and not asking for anything in return! please look at this blog and show others and maybe it will touch you like it has touched others! Thank you http://experienceactsofkindness.blogspot.com/