What can YOU do in the face of societal crisis (other than writing, calling, and sending pigeons to your lawmakers)?
After the school shootings, the weather scares, Ukraine, politicians that actually seem like they don’t care, and the day-to-day stress of real life, things can seem helpless. It is easy to feel so truly overwhelmed that just by sitting on the couch watching the news, it seems that all there is to do is sit on the couch and watch the news. And it’s true, individually, we can’t do a lot to change the entire system.
And it is also true that we can group together and make real change.
And it is ALSO true that there are a few other things we can do.
1. Put your oxygen mask on first.
In other words, if you don’t continue to take care of yourself, you won’t have the capacity to do anything else. Yeah, yeah, self-care. But also turn off the news sometimes. You do not need to know each detail as it comes out. If it is important, you’ll come across the information somewhere, trust me. And the news is entertainment. Their job at the news companies is to produce information in a way that makes money. (Read: they don’t want you to turn the TV off or stop scrolling. They won’t make it easy on you; you’ll have to do it yourself.)
2. Build relationships.
Across the board, mass shootings and other like crimes can be traced back to someone that is alone, isolated, feels they don’t belong, or feels rejected. Without a sense of community, there is no sense of loyalty or responsibility for upholding the community. And beneath all of that breeds anger and resentment. Consider building relationships with those who need it. Big Brothers Big Sisters and other mentoring groups are DESPERATE for mentors. Being a mentor just means you create some time for a youth who could use someone who cares even a little. It makes you feel good, adds a tremendous amount of value to the child’s life, and also helps to create a sense of community and belonging for someone who might not otherwise experience that.
3. Narrow down your mission.
There is so much to care about and every day there is something new. We are human and do not have the capacity to care hard about everything; that’s when burnout creeps in. Narrow down what is most important to you and start there. Feel good about your goal rather than focusing on what you are not doing. We cannot do it all!
4. Fundraise.
Donating money is great. Fundraising a bunch of money is fantastic. People are busy and distracted. While a lot of us intend to donate money to a variety of causes, it might just be the end-of-the-year rush that motivates the clicking of the donate button. However, seeing a friend ask directly for contributions to a specific cause or charity both makes the fundraising more personal and also increases the motivation to finally follow through.
Personal example: Twice now, I have been moved to fundraise simply by the feeling of helplessness. Because I’m a baker, I used that as an opportunity to get folks moving and provide a literal sweet treat for their contributions. Both times I raised over 1K entirely alone and was never overcome by the amount of work it required. In fact, it was energizing because the issue mattered to me! Baked goods, bracelets, paintings, knit socks, hugs … you’d be surprised what might motivate your crew!
5. Include your kids.
Teaching a new generation is bigger than one act of service. It starts with teaching about generosity and giving in an explicit and intentional way. Read books. Point out examples. But even more, If we can move our incoming generation to understand why we give when we don’t have to and why we go out of our way for others, we go from learning to application. Help them come up with their own ideas on how to contribute. It might be paying it forward when buying lunch. It might be sending homemade cards to soldiers. Or it might be sticking up for the kid who is getting bullied. Help them narrow down their mission too. If that sounds too hard, a quick google search brought up this list which means there are plenty of places that have done the work for you!
This list could go on forever, and there are countless ways to do little things. Little things add up and have their value. The little things might be a huge thing to someone else.
