Yeah, you read that right: be selfish. Take care of yourself for once. No, I’m not talking about going to the gym regularly or getting your nails done once a week. I’m talking about deep, soulful nourishment. The kinda stuff that gets you up every morning with pep in your step and a drive to conquer the world. Isn’t that what coffee is for, you say? No, I’m not referring to a substance that will result in an addiction, interfere with your sleeping patterns, and turn you into every co-worker’s worst nightmare. It’s far more potent than that. In fact, it’ll add years to your life, increase your self-confidence, and keep you fit. Surprise, surprise- it’s volunteering. You knew it would get redirected to this topic somehow, didn’t you?

Volunteering in its most basic form is performing a kind deed without the expectation of an extrinsic reward such as money, awards, recognition, etc. Emphasis on the word “extrinsic.” There’s no shame in volunteering for the sake of purpose, positivity, and/or performance, all of which fall under intrinsic value. We don’t all have to be aiming towards alleviating world poverty to get ourselves to assist at a local food pantry. Sometimes you can give yourself a pass to participate to put a smile on your face. Wanna know what’ll happen if you do? Your smile will be the cause of numerous other grins and giggles.

You are of no good to anyone, especially to yourself, if you’re just going through the daily motions of this thing called life. It’s so easy to get all caught up in our mundane, strenuous lives that we begin to disconnect from our surroundings, leading to some really negative thoughts about ourselves and those around us. And as we all know, bad thoughts pave the way for bad actions. Moral of the story:

55a5cdb8faa4e752f47df708678cc007

What cause(s) do you donate your time to? How do you feel after participating at a voluntary event?

-Ambassador Nancy

[Image via Caring Choices]

Advertisement