Release The Tension
My days in advertising produced some really great days, stories, and experiences in business that I’ll hang on to for a long time. I was fortunate to work with some really great clients and be a part of their success. I was also blessed to work for a good agency known for it’s values, creativity and results.
One of the things that hung with me the most was the amount of tension and stress of doing a great job and meeting the expectations of my clients and my employers. Whether or not I was meeting the expectations of everyone often burdened me leaving me questioning how long I could take the pressure without getting burnt out.
I learned early on that I needed external releases or activities that I could invest in that would balance out the burden that comes with success at times.
One of those outlets was volunteering.
Volunteering gives you an opportunty to offer your best to non-profit organizations without all the expectations that come with getting paid for the same efforts. There’s something therapuetic about being able to do what you love, invest in an organization that could really use that talent, not get paid for it and walk away when the project was done feeling good about it.
Volunteering is a really broad concept and in most outlets means you showing up and performing some task such as picking up trash, stocking shelves at a food bank, or even swinging a hammer. All of these outlets are great and provide a little mundane release from the usual high pased activity you’re used to keeping in your day job.
From my experience, when you invest your day job skills or passions into a non-profit that you support missionaly, it can be the most rewarding time spent all week. Whether it’s writing copy, providing admin support, leading a strategic planning event, working on graphic design, or whatever it is you do, it can be transformational.
Consider contacting a local non-profit you know and offering up your skills however they might be of service. The expectations will be low and the boundaries wide open. You’ll learn more about yourself and might even connect to the longing of purpose we feel from time to time.
