20 Things You Can Do Today to Make The World a Better Place

Cher from Clueless probably has a great donation pile. (Photo: Paramount Pictures)

Donate Things You Don’t Need

Like most people, you probably have too much stuff.  Why not get rid of some of it, and help others at the time? Bonus: This process will be great for you too. It’ll help you declutter your home – whether it’s from clothes that don’t fit anymore, items you never use or gifts you forgot you were given.  And, more importantly, that stuff you don’t need anymore can really make a difference in someone’s life.

Thinking about donating clothes? You can always consider national organizations like Goodwill or the Salvation Army. There may be additional options worth investigating in your local community that will have more of an impact on people in your area. Have specific kinds of clothes to donate? Consider passing your business wear on to Dress for Success, which provides professional attire to women in need.  Career Gear is a similar organization aimed at helping professional men. And you can donate your gently used footwear to groups like Soles 4 Souls or Share Your Souls and help fight poverty by providing shoes to those in need.

Other ideas – do you have extra blankets? Consider giving them to your local animal shelter. The dogs and cats there will happily make new beds out of them. Got glasses you don’t like anymore? Donate them to OneSight, which will responsibly recycle them and help turn your old specs into a new pair for someone who needs them. There are so many ways to help others with what you already have. And it’ll make you feel more fortunate at the same time.