Did you brush your teeth this morning? Grab your morning cup of coffee. According to research, roughly 40-50% of our daily actions are considered habits. They are ingrained behaviors performed without conscious thought. Habits enable us to focus our conscious energy on the things that require more deliberate thought.
Habits can lead to consistency, discipline, and change. They guide our lives and shape what we do. We can build them consciously and unconsciously. Some habits move us forward and some habits may inhibit our goals. Bringing conscious intention to our habits can guide us through a path of lasting change. For example, if you have a daily habit of enjoying a glass of wine while watching television every day after work, but that does not necessarily serve your health goals, bringing conscious awareness to this habit could enable you to look at things differently and determine behaviors or even establish other habits that might better serve your goals.
Many of us have habits around how we spend our time, from hygiene to dressing to exercise to food to entertainment. Yet, one of the areas many of us do not have a habit around is volunteering. While there are numerous studies speaking to the benefits of volunteer service, from increasing happiness, reducing anxiety, developing confidence, making new friends, etc., we think of volunteering at certain times of the year or when we are asked by a friend or colleague.
We know that needs know no season. Families experience food insecurity 365 days a year, not just at Thanksgiving and Christmas. Children need educational supports daily, not just during seasons of giving. Resources are needed for our most vulnerable, not just on Giving Tuesday. Yet, we often let our volunteerism be guided by the holiday season, and our philanthropy be guided by artificial media campaigns and timing dictated by external pressures.
Here at Charity Newsies, our most visible fundraising effort happens on the second Saturday of every December, where you will find Charity Newsies volunteers at corners throughout Franklin County collecting money for children. For some, it’s the singular day of the year when they think of clothing insecurity and the impact of clothing on the education of children. In reality, for under-resourced families in Central Ohio, they think of clothing insecurity every single day, when children freeze at bus stops because they don’t have coats or gloves or when a child is marked truant because they decide they cannot attend school for lack of dress code compliant clothing.
What would it look like if, instead of thinking of our most vulnerable during certain campaigns or certain days, we, from grass-tops to grassroots, began to look at the needs of our communities every single day? We might be able to more holistically, comprehensively, and collaboratively work together to address the root causes of poverty. We might be better positioned to tackle societal issues that have impact, as well as better understand and comprehend our common humanity.
What would it look like, instead, if we made service a habit? Nonprofits would be able to rely on consistent support to deliver their missions in supporting their communities. Volunteers would be able to engage in a daily, weekly, monthly, or otherwise regular habits that would benefit them while enabling them to pursue the passions and experiences that matter to them.
As you look to 2025 and contemplate your New Year’s resolutions, I hope that service will be something that you will consider because, through volunteerism, you will change your world and you will change your life.
By: Subha Lembach, Executive Director, Charity Newsies
