I want to share the message that heroism is something everybody can participate in. You don’t need superpowers or riches. You just need the heroic spirit to DO things. To really live.

Heroic acts can be mundane, courageous, mischievous, or any number of things. They can be team activities, or they can be entirely internal to oneself. They can be performed in front of a crowd, or done in total secrecy.

This is a scattershot list of 100 ideas for heroism, for people in all sorts of situations. But it’s only the tip of the iceberg. There are millions of ways you can be heroic, and hopefully this list will inspire you to come up with many of your own.

1. Strive for something.
2. Achieve something other say can’t be done.
3. Wear a smile, even when life’s not going your way.
4. Keep the faith in the face of adversity.
5. Keep your word even when it proves unexpectedly hard.
6. Forgive someone who has wronged you and move on.
7. Take the first step toward repairing a broken friendship.
8. Restore contact with someone you’ve ghosted.
9. Continue to pursue a goal no matter how many times you’ve failed.
10. Prove a mathematical theorem.
11. Keep your cool when somebody’s shouting at you.
12. Ask somebody how they’re doing and sincerely care about the answer.
13. Adopt a shelter pet.
14. Donate to a charity back in your home town.
15. Write to your elected officials.
16. Stick up for someone being bullied.
17. Keep your marriage alive.
18. Raise a child.
19. Learn a foreign language.
20. Set a fitness goal, even a modest one, and make it happen.
21. Pester the city to bring sidewalks into ADA compliance.
22. Start a garden and grow some vegetables.
23. Faced with a problem, find a creative solution others failed to see.
24. Host a party and get to know your neighbors.
25. Build a piece of furniture from scratch.
26. Join a martial arts school.
27. Take a hike through an unfamiliar part of town.
28. Get certified in something.
29. Answer somebody’s question on the internet.
30. Create or edit a Wikipedia article.
31. Give your dog an extra long walk.
32. Give a game or book a chance after critics shun it.
33. Plant some perennial flowers that keep coming back year after year.
34. Plant a fruit tree, even if you won’t be around to eat the fruit.
35. Study pieces of history that the popular consciousness has gotten wrong.
36. Try a kind of food for the first time.
37. Tutor kids.
38. Take a class in something you know practically nothing about.
39. Register as an organ donor.
40. Defend a thesis or dissertation.
41. Pick up litter in the local park.
42. Volunteer at a local charity.
43. Deliberately seek out conversations with people of different political views.
44. Tell a good joke to somebody who really needs it.
45. Question whether an authority figure has actual legitimacy and what it rests upon.
46. Deliberately “miss out” on something.
47. Bring treats for your coworkers even if it’s not a special occasion.
48. Write a story and submit it for publication.
49. Surprise your significant other with a “just-because” gift.
50. Call up a parent and have a nice long chat.
51. Introduce somebody to their new favorite show.
52. Take a hike alone in the forest.
53. Pick up a hitchhiker for a stretch.
54. Conquer a fear.
55. Audition for a part at a local theater.
56. On a trip, remember souvenirs for everyone back home.
57. Respond to an insult with absolutely nothing at all.
58. Introduce friends to each other and see if they don’t become friends too.
59. Share your candy with the other kids at the park.
60. Take care of somebody’s kids so they can have some fun time to themselves.
61. Hire a former convict.
62. Petition the city to better support affordable housing.
63. Get the high score on an arcade machine.
64. Be the first to call the paramedics in a medical emergency.
65. Pick a random country off the map and learn about it.
66. On foreign vacations, be kind, behave, and leave a good impression of your countrymen.
67. In social settings, try talking with the shyer, more reserved people.
68. Keep a family tradition alive.
69. Surprise your parents and do your chores before they ask.
70. Pass the exam and get your driver’s license.
71. Run faster and catch a bus/train you were going to miss.
72. Pay somebody a sincere complement.
73. Memorize a favorite poem/verse, perhaps even set to music.
74. Do your fair share of the household chores, and maybe even a little beyond that.
75. Remind family members that you love them.
76. Go on a blind date.
77. Eat a diet rich in protein and fiber.
78. Study how to defend yourself from someone coming at you with a banana.
79. Write a screenplay.
80. Develop a game and share it.
81. Make a charitable donation, tell absolutely no-one, and take the secret to your grave.
82. Kick a bad habit.
83. Try out an alternative operating system.
84. Pair a complaint with a practical solution for fixing it.
85. Save somebody from being scammed.
86. Invent something cool.
87. Join a fitness group, like classes at a gym or a running club.
88. Fix up a beat-up bicycle and give it a new life.
89. Share a good recipe with somebody who asks for it.
90. Pass on a skill of yours.
91. Start a club.
92. Admire some outdoor artwork.
93. Go to a religious retreat.
94. Find tricks to lower your grocery bills, such as relying less on ready-made meals.
95. Leave more pennies than you take.
96. Compose a song.
97. Make it home for the holidays.
98. Keep a journal for posterity.
99. Build your own website and lessen your reliance on social media.
100. Take time out to think long, deep thoughts about where your purpose in life lies.