#payitforward

Last weekend, sandwiched between our first workday back and our last weekend of freedom, a group of us ended up at a bar for happy hour on the west side of town. It was a random mix of people, all with the same intentions: to unwind after a long day, and to make the most of what little time we had left before we were back to the grind.

As usual, we made a conscious effort to avoid "shoptalk". And while the occasional reference to a student or school story slipped in, we were generally pretty successful. The topics of conversation ranged from recaps of our winter break plans to upcoming events to current news stories. One of my co-workers told us about an incredible act of generosity that took place in Canada. It starts like one you've heard before. A patron at a drive-through window paid for the customer behind him, as a random act of kindness. What makes this occurrence so unusual is that it turned into a random chain of kindness that continued for three hours and 228 customers! (Wouldn't you hate to be the 229th, who unknowingly ended the incredible streak?) Read the full story here.

As we marveled at the implications of such a simple act, we began tossing around ideas for recreating a similar sentiment at work: #payitforward. (Don't ask where the hashtag came from, it's all the rage these days.) The wheels were in motion, and by the time we paid our tabs, we had a plan. Over the next week, we would perform random acts of kindness for our co-workers, leaving only an anonymous #payitforward note as evidence. We had even decided on our first recipient, our literacy coordinator who, on top of his assigned responsibilities always ends up being a "fill-in" for random duties that pop up throughout the day (and never, ever complains). For once, I couldn't wait for Monday.

Monday morning, three of the original schemers spent their first planning period checking and entering all of the literacy coordinator's homework (on top of theirs!), and we waited anxiously for him to discover what they had done.

Unfortunately, I never saw his reaction in the moment. But I did hear him mention it later that afternoon, and I was secretly thrilled to see it spark the curiosity of our co-workers. No one knew how it had started, or what would become of it, but if nothing else it was a neat little way to start off our work week. To be honest, I was a little worried that it wouldn't catch on. We get so caught up in our day-to-day duties and tasks that it wasn't hard to imagine the grand scheme never playing out.

The original schemers had planned to hit as many people as possible ourselves in the first two days to ensure the trend continued. But to our delight, #payitforward started spreading like wildfire, even without us fanning the flame. People who were receiving the random acts of kindness were just as quickly turning around and paying it forward. In this first week, people have received everything from treats to coffee to break coverage to sweet notes written by children. It was exciting to watch, and I felt lucky to be on the "inside". A buzz was in the air, and it was the topic of conversation on multiple occasions.

At first, it was tempting to try to figure out who was responsible for an individual act. Many of us tried to decipher handwriting, question possible witnesses, and compare schedules to figure out to whom we owed thanks. I was just as guilty of this as anyone else. But eventually, we convinced each other that obsessing over the "who" defeated the purpose of the whole thing. The idea was to show gratitude not by making a big production of thanking someone, but to turn around and do the same for another unsuspecting teammate. Instead of anxiously trying to pay someone back, we were eagerly finding a way to pay it forward.

At our Friday professional development, numerous people mentioned #payitforward, saying that it gave them something to look forward to and made coming back after a long break much easier. Two of the teachers even started a similar "random acts of kindness" chain with the students in their advisory to encourage team-building.

I have had very little to do with this, but I am reaping so many of the benefits. It truly did make the week more exciting, and it filled the teacher work room with a positive energy that we haven't had in a while. Not to mention I was the recipient of some pretty amazing notes from sweet children that made my day.

Ours isn't a news-worthy story. It's no 228-person-chain-in-a-drive-thru-line. But it added a little something extra to my week and to the morale of our team. It has made me more aware of how much the little things can really mean, with a combination of thoughtfulness and good timing. Even if the official "#payitforward" movement ends this week, I hope we continue to find meaningful ways to lighten the load of our teammates. Work is so much more enjoyable when you know you aren't in it alone.

I dare you to #payitforward.

PS: While a few names have been tossed around as potential #payitforward originators, my co-workers still don't know who started the trend. It's been hilarious listening to them develop theories about its origin, and I've had fun adding in my own (obviously false) theories. Shhhhh.