What to do?

There are literally thousands of things you’re not doing right now.

There’s no shortage of people telling you things you should be doing. And if you do one thing, there’s still thousands of things you’re still not doing. It’s not enough. You’re not doing the right things. And still others will scold you for doing anything at all.

I grew up being told that helping out meant going to work at a soup kitchen, donating canned goods, and donating blankets to the homeless. There’s no doubt these are all Good Things. So why am I not dedicating all of my time to these activities?

I could be a nurse or a health professional. That would help people for sure. But here’s the thing: I would be a terrible nurse. Needles gives me the heebie jeebies, and the sight of blood makes me run for the bathroom. I’m so incredibly thankful that people are willing to perform this selfless duty day after day, but it’s just not for me.

So what is for me? How can I help? That’s a question that’s been on loop in my brain. It’s a question I think many people ask themselves. I think it makes sense to find ways to help that map to your specific skill set and personality.

I should volunteer at my food bank. Again, that would really help people out. But how about redesigning the food bank’s website? That maps to my skills a lot better and can enable more people to donate and volunteer to the food bank. (I still haven’t gotten exact numbers, but online donations have gone up significantly since we did the project).

I’m going to do my best to focus my energy, money, and time on things that help others be healthy, happy, prosperous, and safe.

Different people do different things to help. Those things might not exactly align with the things you think help. You might not think the things I choose to do aren’t helping at all. And I’m sorry if you feel that people don’t need helped.

What can you do that aligns with your values, personality, and skills? Try to do those things. There will still be thousands of things you aren’t doing to help, but trust that you can do something.