Add Spontaneity to Life on Just Because Day

By Stephanie Kirby | Published August 27, 2023

If you ever feel stuck in a rut, Just Because Day is here to help!

Does life ever feel like the movie Groundhog Day where you wake up to a new day that looks exactly like the day before it?

If you’re feeling trapped in routine and the regular demands of life, I’ve got a fun but well-intentioned holiday for you to celebrate—National Just Because Day.

Now there are so many ridiculous “national days” out there that they start to feel a little frivolous, like National Cheesy Socks Day, National Potty Dance Day, and National Have a Bad Day Day.

And let’s be honest, they are frivolous, but National Just Because Day is one I can get behind, and I think you’ll like it, too.

What is National Just Because Day?

National Just Because Day is an invitation to add spontaneity to your life in any way you want.

Some use it to do weird things, like wear a chicken costume to an ice cream parlor for dinner.

Others use the day to complete random acts of kindness toward others for no reason at all.

Either way, you go with it, there are benefits to living a little more spontaneously.

The History of National Just Because Day

You may be wondering how an odd “national day” like this even gets started, and rightly so.

If you have ever wondered if one person can start a trend and make a difference, here’s a heartwarming story for you.

In the 1960s, Joseph J. Goodwin bought a transistor radio for his wife… just because.

This simple act became a family tradition where they did things together just because.

It wasn’t about giving gifts but spending leisure time together and enjoying family and life.

Throughout the decades, this idea spread across California and eventually became National Just Because Day.

People now use the day to do things “just because,” whether it’s spending a leisurely day on the beach with family, taking a pottery class, or sleeping until noon.

Benefits of Being a Little Spontaneous

As we become adults and then older adults, it’s easy for life to become predictable.

The responsibilities of life create routines that are hard to break.

We go to work, run kids to activities, have meetings, grocery shop, cook dinner, and then do it again the next day.

Even the things we enjoy can begin to feel like routine: exercise first thing in the morning, coffee with friends Wednesday afternoon, pickleball Saturday morning, and on it goes day after day, week after week.

My Story of Learning to Be More Spontaneous

I’m a person who craves routine in my life, and I married a man who is way more spontaneous than I ever wanted to be, which caused us headaches as we learned how to work together.

We finally hit the sweet spot where routine meets spontaneity on our first trip to Disney World when our kids were little.

I had spent a year planning the trip.

I knew what parks to go to on which days, the best time to go on each ride, where we were eating our table service meals, and pretty much everything else I could learn to make our trip amazing.

But then, during our first day at Magic Kingdom, we noticed a Disney cast member standing alone and thought it was weird.

When talking with them, we learned that a couple of Disney characters were headed that way to do a meet-and-greet.

Because we embraced a little spontaneity, my daughters got to meet and get pictures with characters we may never have seen had we not been willing to deviate from my perfectly well-laid-out plans.

Benefits of Spontaneity

There is a balance between the comfort of plans and routines and the fun and adventure of being spontaneous.

Here are some of the benefits of being spontaneous in life:

Eliminates boredom
Helps you become more adaptable
Reduces stress
Builds resilience
Increases creativity levels
Improves decision-making skills
Allows you to learn new things and have new experiences
Builds confidence

It’s good for us to get out of our comfort zones, and it’s even better when we can positively impact others in the process.

Ways to Celebrate National Just Because Day

Now that you know what National Just Because Day is, how it started, and some of its benefits, let’s jump into how you can celebrate it.

Here are some ideas to help you make the most of August 27th.

Engage in a self-care activity… just because

Guess what?

You don’t have to feel stressed to the max before you do something for self-care.

Many messages online share the importance of self-care activities for our mental and physical health.

While they have great information, sometimes they can read like self-care activities are only for people experiencing stress, anxiety, depression, or other mental health challenges.

The truth is that regularly doing self-care activities can help you avoid hitting the point of burnout and challenges.

So why not use Just Because Day to do something you love, for self-care, even if you’re not already feeling like you need it?

Use it as a day to hit the spa, meditate for hours, have lunch with a friend, hike in the afternoon, and relax and recharge.

Do something kind for someone else for no reason

The possibilities are limitless when it comes to doing nice things for others—especially when you don’t need a reason to do it.

Here are some ideas to get your wheels turning:

Pay for the drink of the car behind you in line
Make time to call your grandma and listen to her tell stories for an hour
Buy a gift card and hand it off to a stranger on the street
Compliment every person you see during the day
Drop off bouquets of flowers for residents at a nursing home
Drop off treats for the local kindergarten class
Pick up trash along the street
Spend the afternoon bringing grocery carts back into the store
Pay for gas for another car at the gas station
Give up your seat on the bus
Meet your spouse at the door and give them a kiss when they get home

Choose something above, or pick something else you can do.

The best part is that there is no “right” or “wrong” on National Just Because Day.

Do The Thing You’ve Wanted To Do Forever

We all have that list of things we want to do or try but never get around to doing.

Use this as your opportunity to do that thing, whatever it is.

Sign up for dance class, buy the guitar, eat cake for dinner, start a blog, sit on a bench in the park and read for the afternoon, try the weird-looking fruit at the market, or introduce yourself to that person you pass by every day and have never talked to.

National Just Because Day gives you the excuse you’ve been looking for to do what you want because you don’t need a reason to do it.

Take part in National Just Because Day

And here’s the best part of National Just Because Day—you can live life like this every single day.

You can do random acts of kindness for others, cherish some time with family and friends, take classes, eat the cake, or do all those odd little things you want without needing permission or an excuse.

Let Just Because Day teach you to make the most of every day because the truth is, none of us knows how many days we have left.