Do good. Volunteer.
If you have time on your hands or want to do something new, sign up for a good cause. It pays, in many ways.
ATRAVELLER is robbed and beaten up and left for dead by the roadside. Other passers-by do not stop to help. Finally, a man does stop. He binds the traveller’s wounds, takes him to an inn and pays for his stay there till he recovers.
Thus goes the story of the Good Samaritan. It may be a Biblical parable, but anyone can relate to its basic message of doing good and helping a stranger without any expectation of reward, simply because it’s the right thing to do.
While the parable has inspired the founding of charitable organisations and hospitals, today, acting selflessly is often called volunteerism.
The parable doesn’t say what happened to the Good Samaritan but we can hope he went on to live a long life of more good deeds. He probably died happy and fulfilled, too, because that’s what helping others can do for the do-gooder.
That sense of accomplishment and satisfaction is something Roshan Thiran, CEO of Leaderonomics can identify with. He started Leaderonomics in 2007 as a social enterprise organisation to transform nations through leadership development.
“My aim was to develop leaders by changing hearts and mindsets. Fifteen to 20 years later, these people would transform our country,” he says.
Leaderonomics, a subsidiary of the The Star media group, has three divisions – Corporate Services, Media, and Community – which complement each other in funding and content creation.
“The core mission of the company is to grow people into leaders. Those who cannot afford to pay for our workshops can come for free. We fund the workshops through our corporate work and partners,” explains Roshan, 38, who led the CSR programmes in the multi-national companies that he previously worked in.
In leading the CSR programmes, it was decided that the companies would not give out money, but instead, do good to impact the community and be better people for it. Thus Leaderonomics’ Community division works closely with various NGOS. Why should someone volunteer? “Because the more you do so, the more you will step out of your comfort zone, and learn and grow,” he says.
“For example, if you are not a teacher and you’re required to teach, you will learn that skill. If you’re a volunteer with NGO Habitat for Humanity, which builds homes for families in need from all backgrounds, you will learn to build a house.”
Roshan recalls his own experience of learning to lay cement and build a house and the irreplaceable feeling of knowing that he has helped build a home for someone while picking up a new skill.
He has also seen what it does for other people first-hand and cites the story of a secretary who got involved in volunteering. The woman was given a project to lead and, as a result, she learnt to influence, coordinate and manage, using her new leadership skills.
“Organisations fail to understand the power of volunteering and how people generally become better as they are learning all kinds of skills. Today, Sheela Chandran – that secretary – has become a better leader and is one of our trainers.”
Volunteerism has many benefits, he adds. Apart from being a good stress reliever, the activity is good for your mind and body and can help you live longer and better!
“Volunteering also connects you to others, expands your network and boosts your social skills. More importantly, volunteers are often the glue that holds a community together.”
Roshan says it is a fact that 90 % of leaders were involved in some form of community work whilst they were young.
“If you are considering a new career, volunteering can help you get experience in your area of interest and meet people in the field. It allows you to try out a new job without having to make a long-term commitment and can also teach you new skills.” How does one go about it? As you will be donating your time, Roshan stresses that it is important that you enjoy and benefit from it.
“Many people volunteer to make time for hobbies outside of work. If you have a desk job and long to spend time outdoors, you can help to plant a community garden, lead local community programmes or help out at a youth camp,” he says.
But it can be daunting finding the right cause or activity to sign up for. This is where The Star comes in, with its “Do good. Volunteer.” campaign.
The newspaper will embark on a series of articles on volunteers and causes to promote awareness of and provide information on volunteerism. It is also setting up a portal that will help match NGOS and causes with volunteers. ( See Easy to do your bit)
The portal will cover a wide range of volunteer work. For example, there is Dropzone & Youth Leadership Club in Petaling Jaya.
Dropzone, a customised centre that provides youths with leadership inspiration and a place to learn and explore their interests, has been bought over by and is now managed by Leaderonomics.
Its founder, Chong Keat Lim – vicepresident of Leaderonomics’ Youth division – describes Dropzone as an alternative hangout for those at risk, between the ages of 13 and 20.
“It’s a way of keeping them off the streets. Dropzone is like a club which provides kids a place to meet up after school. We run programmes tailored for secondary students but we welcome everyone,” Chong says.
Bukit Harapan in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, focuses on helping abused children and women by having a system that links the community with the police.
Yet another NGO is Prison Fellowship Malaysia, which serves Sabah and Sarawak, by helping the families of prisoners.
“It offers physical, educational and emotional assistance and counselling to the spouses and kids of prisoners so they won’t feel ostracised by the community,” says Roshan.
Volunteer work can also come in the form of one’s passion, like the Everton in the Community (football coaching programme) run by a group of football enthusiasts.
“They offer football coaching based on the Wayne Rooney formula provided for free by Everton football club in Britain. Coaching is given free to underprivileged children by volunteer coaches comprising ex-footballers who care about kids and their development,” says Roshan.
Different people may volunteer for different reasons and he believes the one question that individuals and organisations need to ask is: “What’s in it for me?”
While the payback is clear for individuals, there is more to it than just good public relations for the companies involved.
Roshan explains that when a volunteer is given a task, for example, to turn around a badly run orphanage in six months, he would be challenged to do something out of his usual responsibilities.
“That person will learn to create a strategy framework, think about its execution, look into finance and administration, lobby for help and make decisions. By doing all this he will be stepping into the shoes of a ‘leader’.”
Doing something one is not familiar with may lead to mistakes along the way, Roshan adds, “but as the volunteer goes through the process of working on his project, he will learn and his company will now have an employee who has a new ability and skill.”
“If you can do this with multiple groups of people, can you imagine the effects of volunteering?”