Pay It Forward Day

Today we are breaking our usual no Thursday post rule to mark a special event. Today is the 5th annual "Pay It Forward Day", with the aim of inspiring 3 million acts of kindness around the world.

The concept of Pay it Forward is simple. Instead of paying back a good deed to the original benefactor, you do a good deed for someone else. If everybody in the world followed this principle, imagine what could happen!

While the concept is actually quite old, in 1999 author Catherine Ryan Hyde published a novel called Pay It Forward (later adapted to film) that started an international movement of giving.

In the book, it's a challenge to do three good deeds for others in response to a good deed done for you, and it should be something the beneficiary cannot accomplish on their own. This way, the practice spreads at a ratio of three to one, making the world a better place. While the original version was published as an adult book, a young reader's edition will be available this August.

The Pay it Forward Movement and Foundation was founded in the USA, helping start a ripple effect of kindness acts around the world. Charley Johnson, the newly appointed president of the foundation, had an idea for encouraging kindness acts by having a Pay it Forward Bracelet that could be worn as a reminder. Since then, over a million Pay it Forward bracelets have been distributed in over 100 countries sparking acts of kindness. If you are interested in getting more information about these bracelets, visit this website: http://www.pifexperience.org/bracelets

Adults are not the only people who can get involved, and Canadian author Nancy Runstedler recently published Pay it Forward Kids which introduces readers to ordinary kids from across North America who have done and are doing extraordinary things. A percentage of all royalties from the project will be donated to the official Pay It Forward Foundation, so if you have kids of your own, know somebody with kids, or work in education, this is a must-have book!

For more information on Pay It Forward Day and how to get involved, you can visit the official website:http://payitforwardday.com

If you haven't read the novel that inspired the movement, visit your local bookstore or library and get your copy. And in the meantime, challenge yourself today to perform one act of kindness for somebody else. You never know when that kind act will come full circle and make its way back to you!