Volunteering: A Gift You Give Yourself | Rosalie Ann Norton | TEDxRuakura

Summary

The speaker reflects on their experiences volunteering from a young age, inspired by family members who always put others first. They recount moments spent helping at food banks, gift wrapping for charity, and becoming involved with a youth-focused organization. Volunteering helped the speaker overcome anxiety, build confidence, and develop meaningful relationships. The journey highlights how even small acts of kindness can lead to positive change, personal growth, and bring joy to others. The message encourages people to be kind, confident, and to take action in making a difference.

Takeaways

• 🤝 Volunteering is a central theme in the speaker's life, influenced by family members who are actively involved in community work.
• 👨‍👩‍👧 The speaker grew up in a family environment that values helping others, with their mother and grandmother as prime examples.
• 😲 The speaker was initially surprised to learn that people volunteer their time without expecting any payment.
• 🎄 The speaker's first solo volunteer experience was in 2019 at a local food bank, which proved to be rewarding and less intimidating than expected.
• 🍞 Volunteering at the food bank during lockdown taught the speaker the vital role of volunteers and donations in helping the community.
• 😌 The speaker struggles with anxiety but has pushed through those challenges by participating in public activities like singing, public speaking, and a TEDx talk.
• 🎁 For the past two years, the speaker and their family have volunteered by gift-wrapping at a mall to raise donations during the Christmas season.
• 💡 Volunteering has helped the speaker gain confidence and develop decision-making skills that extend beyond just following instructions.
• 🌱 The speaker has been involved with Seed Waikato, an organization supporting youth mental wellbeing, which has led to valuable mentoring and friendships.
• 🙌 Through volunteering, the speaker has learned that small acts of kindness can have a significant positive impact on others, bringing joy and confidence to both giver and receiver.

Q & A

What activities did the speaker engage in during their teenage years?

The speaker spent a lot of their extra time volunteering and getting involved in their community.

How did the speaker's family influence their involvement in volunteering?

The speaker's family members, including their mom and nana, were always volunteering, which inspired the speaker to do the same.

What was the speaker's first volunteering experience?

The speaker's first volunteering experience was at a local food bank around Christmas in 2019.

How did the speaker feel during their first volunteering experience at the food bank?

The speaker was initially nervous but was welcomed warmly and enjoyed the experience so much that they wanted to return the next day.

What was the atmosphere like when the speaker volunteered during the lockdown?

During the lockdown, the atmosphere was different with only six volunteers present, as many were in high-risk categories and couldn't help.

How did volunteering at the food bank impact the speaker's understanding of its importance?

Volunteering at the food bank made the speaker realize the importance of having workers and volunteers to keep the operation moving and the reliance on donations.

What challenges did the speaker face in their teenage years?

The speaker suffered from bad anxiety that started affecting them more as they became a teenager, making it hard to socialize and talk to new people.

How did the speaker's involvement in volunteer gift wrapping help them gain confidence?

Volunteering to gift wrap at a shopping mall helped the speaker gain inner confidence, learn to handle money, hold conversations, and make decisions.

What organization did the speaker become a part of and how did it help them?

The speaker became a part of Seed Waikato, an organization focused on youth mental wellbeing, where they wrote blogs, helped set up events, and found a supportive community.

How did the speaker's nana's experience with volunteering in New Zealand differ from her initial expectations?

The speaker's nana was initially shy but found that volunteering allowed her to experience the local lifestyle, make friends, and discover a love for knitting.

What lesson did the speaker learn about happiness and kindness through their volunteering experiences?

The speaker learned that happiness doesn't have a price and that doing good deeds and acts of kindness can bring significant joy to others and oneself.

Outlines

00:00

🌟 Volunteering Experiences and Personal Growth

The speaker reflects on their early experiences with volunteering, influenced by their family's active participation in community service. They recount their initial surprise at the voluntary nature of such work and share their first solo volunteering experience at a local food bank during Christmas 2019. This experience was transformative, as it not only alleviated their anxiety but also instilled a sense of purpose and joy in helping others. The narrative continues with the speaker's involvement during a lockdown, where they and their sister contributed to the food bank amidst a reduced volunteer force. This period solidified their understanding of the critical role volunteers play in such institutions. The speaker also discusses overcoming personal challenges like anxiety through public speaking and other volunteer activities, culminating in a newfound confidence and self-awareness.

05:02

👫 The Impact of Volunteering on Personal and Community Well-being

In this paragraph, the speaker delves into the broader impacts of volunteering, both on a personal and community level. They highlight their grandmother's experience as an immigrant, using volunteering as a stepping stone to integrate into New Zealand society, make friends, and discover new hobbies like knitting. The speaker also emphasizes the personal benefits of volunteering, such as skill acquisition, building confidence, and the intrinsic satisfaction derived from acts of kindness. They conclude with an inspiring message, encouraging the audience to embrace volunteer work as a means to foster positive change and personal happiness, emphasizing that even small acts of kindness can have profound effects on others' lives.

Keywords

💡Volunteering

Volunteering refers to offering time and effort to help others without financial compensation. In the video, the speaker emphasizes how their family, especially their mother and nana, have always been involved in volunteer work, which has deeply influenced their own involvement in community service, such as at the food bank and during the Christmas gift-wrapping event.

💡Community Involvement

Community involvement refers to actively participating in initiatives that improve the social well-being of one's surroundings. The speaker's family background of volunteering instilled a sense of community responsibility, motivating them to spend time in activities like food distribution at the food bank and participating in events with Seed Waikato.

💡Anxiety

Anxiety is a feeling of nervousness, unease, or fear, especially when facing unfamiliar or challenging situations. The speaker mentions struggling with anxiety, particularly when interacting with new people or performing in public. Despite this, volunteering has helped them build confidence and overcome some of these social anxieties.

💡Confidence

Confidence is the feeling of self-assurance arising from one's abilities or qualities. The speaker discusses how their volunteer experiences, such as public speaking and performing in front of audiences, have fostered a newfound confidence. Activities like wrapping Christmas gifts and organizing events pushed them to trust their decision-making skills.

💡Food Bank

A food bank is an organization that provides food to people in need. The speaker recalls volunteering at a food bank, where they helped organize and distribute food parcels to struggling families. This experience not only made them aware of the importance of such services but also helped them feel fulfilled and motivated to return.

💡Gift Wrapping

Gift wrapping, in this context, refers to a volunteering activity where the speaker and their family wrapped Christmas presents in exchange for donations. This task helped them develop communication and organizational skills, as well as the ability to handle money and interact with people in a busy environment.

💡Seed Waikato

Seed Waikato is a youth-led organization that focuses on mental well-being and supporting young people. The speaker highlights their involvement with this group, starting from writing blogs to setting up events, and eventually becoming a committee member. This organization became a space for the speaker to find mentors and like-minded individuals.

💡Acts of Kindness

Acts of kindness refer to small, thoughtful gestures meant to help or uplift others. The speaker emphasizes that such simple actions, like volunteering or helping at a local food bank, can have a significant impact on someone else’s life. They learned that bringing joy to others through selfless acts can be a profound source of personal happiness.

💡Family Influence

Family influence refers to the way family members shape one’s values and actions. The speaker’s mother and nana were deeply involved in community service, which had a lasting impact on the speaker. This sense of familial responsibility towards others is a recurring theme, as it inspired the speaker to also become engaged in volunteer work from a young age.

💡Mental Well-Being

Mental well-being relates to a person’s emotional and psychological health. The speaker talks about their anxiety and how volunteering, especially with Seed Waikato, helped them build confidence and find a support network. Engaging in volunteer work became a way to not only contribute to others’ well-being but also manage their own mental health.

Highlights

Spent extra time volunteering and getting involved in the community.

Family members were always volunteering, setting an example.

Volunteered at a local food bank during Christmas 2019.

Experienced a welcoming and supportive environment at the food bank.

Helped create food parcels for families in need.

Volunteered during lockdown, understanding the importance of food bank workers.

Faced challenges with anxiety but found volunteering therapeutic.

Gained confidence through volunteer work, overcoming shyness.

Volunteered with Seed Waikato, focusing on youth mental wellbeing.

Started writing blogs for Seed Waikato at the age of 13.

Helped set up events and became a committee member for Seed Waikato.

Met empowering mentors and like-minded individuals through volunteering.

Nana's experience of overcoming shyness and making friends through volunteering.

Discovered the joy of knitting through volunteer groups.

Learned that happiness can come from doing good deeds and helping others.

Encourages small acts of kindness for significant impacts on others' lives.

Positive change starts with the individual.

Transcripts

what were you doing when you were 16

did you spend your weekends shopping and

watching movies with your friends at the

mall

did you go on long drives or spend your

hours

skating around your block for me

i like to spend a lot of my extra time

volunteering and getting involved in my

community

any way i can

growing up my family and the people

around me were always volunteering

my mom supervised swimming and helped

kids with their reading when i was in

primary school

while my nana spends many hours each

week

sorting through donated clothes for our

local op shop

i'm surrounded by family members who

take joy

and pride in putting other people before

themselves

i remember having fun pasting colorful

stickers on school books with mum

and doing what i thought was nicely

folding second-hand t-shirts with nana

as a kid or

a younger kid i never realized that what

my family did on a daily basis was

volunteer work

and was surprised to find out that

people would do this kind of work for

free

one of the first times i volunteered on

my own

was in 2019 around christmas

where i was a volunteer at a local food

bank

i remember turning up to the building

and being so nervous

hyping it up to be the scariest thing

ever

i built up the courage to open the door

and was welcomed in with open arms and

kind words

i spent the day putting cans and

packages onto shelves

putting cups of flour and sugar into

bags

and creating food parcels to then go

back to the families in need

the hours went by so fast

and by the time it was over i was so

pumped to go back

and help the next day

this year my younger sister and i were

asked to come in and help

as the country was moving into lockdown

walking in this time as you can imagine

the vibe and atmosphere was very

different

there was only six of us there as many

of the volunteers were in high risk

categories

and weren't able to help we worked there

four days a week all throughout level

three and four throughout my time there

i got to understand the real importance

of having workers at places like the

food bank

who rely on volunteers to keep it moving

and donations from kind people and

organizations

to provide the food we distribute

over the past few years starting high

school

becoming a teen and going out into the

world

i've been learning so much about myself

all my life i've suffered with bad

anxiety

but it has started really affecting me

in these past few years

i found it hard to talk to new people

and socialize with classmates and

teachers

me back then would never have imagined

going to events

singing and performing in front of an

audience

public speaking or doing a tedx talk for

that matter

would have been the scariest thing i

could have ever done

for the past two years my mum sister and

i

have done volunteer gift wrapping in

december

with volunteering waikato

we spent a few hours stationed at a

shopping mall

wrapping all sorts of christmas gifts in

exchange for donations

it is such an awesome experience

learning how to

handle money hold conversations

while also wrapping gifts that on

occasion were even bigger than me

after being put in this environment it

pushed me to gain an inner confidence

i never knew i had not only was i

able to follow directions but it also

allowed me

to think for myself and follow my gut

decisions

throughout my experiences i've been able

to meet some amazing people

like the team from seed waikato

an organization run by a group of young

people

focused on helping youth with their

mental wellbeing

here in the waikato i started writing

blogs for them when i was 13

then started helping them set up events

and now have become a member of the

committee

through my time with seed i've been able

to make some very empowering mentors

and have found a group of like-minded

people who share similar interests

and aspirations and give me the open

space to just be myself

when my nana first came to new zealand

from vanuatu

she was quite shy and reserved but

really wanted to try new things when she

arrived

so she found that getting involved in a

few volunteer groups

allowed her to get a sense of the

lifestyle here from a back seat

without having to fully commit to a new

hobby

and through this she has made some

amazing friends

and discovered her love for knitting

volunteering has also helped me make new

friends

learn new skills and has helped me

incorporate those new skills

into things that make me happy

i learnt that a shy person like me

can not only speak up socialize and get

involved

but also overcome that shyness and feel

more confident in who i

am i learned that happiness doesn't have

a price

and that sometimes the best source of

happiness can come from doing good deeds

focused on bringing other people joy

there's nothing stopping you from doing

small acts of kindness

that could have the biggest impact in

someone else's life

so be kind be confident

and always remember that positive change

starts with you

[Applause]