Ok, this link is not about me saying why I don't volunteer. (I'll tell you why I don't... I'm lazy.)
If you too are lazy and didn't click over to read the short post, here's the recap:
This guy is an historian specializing in the origins of the names of places. He researched how NYC came to be known as the Big Apple. He discovered the origin of several other cities as well and spent his own time and resources to voluntarily discover these things and share them with said cities and their officials. For which he has never received acknowledgement, let alone a sincere "Thank You."
Contrast this with the idea of "ServiceNation" and the civic-minded excitement that Obama's campaign and early presidency has put a fire under. (An ad for this is what kick-starts his post.)
This gent, not-too-surprisingly, calls foul. He tried doing things for other people using his skills and talents and got bupkis for it. So he says, "Make money, pay taxes. It's the only value America actually places on you."
Is he wrong? The evolutionary motivations for altruism are very basic - if we work together to promote the well-being of our relatives/tribe, then some little part of our genes will live on. That is the payoff - survival. As our "tribe" gets larger and larger, evolving into cities, states and nations, the impulse for good-doing is still there, but the systems don't always support it or reward it. People are at once Strangers and Fellow Citizens. An individual gets excited about an idea and does something about it, only to find that no one else seems to care about this idea. Volunteering can actually be a very complex set of motivations, experiences and payoffs to the volunteer and to the subject of their efforts. The way that the system of government wants you to contribute IS in many ways tied to taxation. That is how we provide (theoretically) for the common good. So in some ways, he is right on the money.
Regardless of the payoff this poor unthanked guy could have, should have or would have gotten, WE have the opportunity to avoid this scenario. I am guilty of rolling my eyes at the older man who would bring half eaten hamburgers to the soup kitchen because he couldn't finish it and was sure someone would want it. I really wished the guy would just stop. However, we always said thank you (and threw it out as soon as he left.) Asking him to stop could have had unforeseen consequences, though. Who knows what other things he might have gone on to do? How many people have we unwittingly squashed because they came to us at an inconvenient time, or didn't fit the physical standard we are used to, or offered something that we did not want?
There is a balance between making good use of your time managing volunteers, being practical, freeing people from wasting their time and yours, and affirming in others the desire to help. It shifts from day to day and situation to situation. I want to get better at it too.
So, next time someone comes to your org with an idea from CrazyLand, consider the most loving way to shoot them down, redirect their efforts or connect them with someone who would benefit from it. Maybe that will help create a realistic Service Nation.
Photo credit
11:14 AM
I think there's a flip side to this. There's a dilemma going on at nonprofits - whether we should be run more like businesses or not.
I think the challenge comes in when you have volunteers, maybe like the burger guy, who aren't really helping your cause. You ask what else he would have stopped doing. Are individual nonprofits responsible for fostering this act? What if the volunteer's actions don't help the organization or it's mission, but serve to confuse people as to how that organization functions? Would you have been better off letting this guy know that while the thought was nice, there were/are other things he could be doing to benefit the org and clients?
I think the guy who researched the Big Apple is a slightly different case, but still...
I know we have SOME responsibility to foster volunteerism, but I don't think we bear the brunt of the burden.
9:30 PM
Great points!
Part of the challenge in responding to volunteers is that they are acting on such a deep, primal instinct that has nothing to do with the organization they volunteer with... so we are not creating that momentum, just giving them an outlet.
And if what they are motivated to do doesn't help?
(I think that is the problem with the original blog I was talking about... no one cared about what he found out. I would, but i'm a geek, so...)
Well, as you say, there is a point where we deflect the unwanted help, or redirect it, or educate the volunteer. In the case of the old man with the hamburger, I literally thought to myself, the net benefit to the Universe of him spending his $0.99 on his burger and sharing half with someone (theoretically) when he probably has so little money, perhaps no family, well, the net benefit of that positive intent is worth the lameness of taking said burger and throwing it away.
If only well-intentioned but misguided volunteers stayed at the 99 cent burger level though!
Incidentally, I'm usually on the "what are you thinking bringing me this stuff i don't need and have no space for?" side. (If you'd seen some of the stuff we got at the homeless shelter, you'd understand.) This has sparked some heavy thought on my part.
I think we need to honor the intent by redirecting without crushing the volunteer. I've been on both sides of that soul crushing convo, and truthfully didn't feel good either way.