« Don't Wish Your Life Away | Main | March Madness »
February 22, 2006
Thank God for Them
Thank THEM!
I used to work in the non-profit sector and usually one of my tasks was
working directly with volunteers. Obtaining and training volunteers is an
expensive part of operating a non-profit organization, yet volunteers
are vital to the survival of non-profit organizations. They are
valuable resources, and organizations work to keep them as long as they
can. The trick is in learning how to keep those volunteers.
Obviously volunteering isn't about the money, for they are paid
nothing. And while it's true volunteers believe in the organization's
mission, they can donate their time and energy to so many deserving
causes, that really there has to be more to it than that. Ultimately,
keeping volunteers comes down to how you treat them. And those of us
working in this area had a golden rule of sorts: Thank every volunteer
seven times.
Yes, seven times.
No, you don't repeat 'thank you' seven times. But you are conscious of
every opportunity to thank them such as when they arrive, when they
leave etc -- even creating times to thank them, just so that you are
certain they are appreciated.
Wouldn't it be wonderful if we all took the time to thank and appreciate
the ones around us? Those people that we love and cherish, the people
that help us get through bad days, the ones who are not only there to
come home to, but make that house a home -- these are the people we
count on the most, yet take for granted the most. And we don't need to
do that. We can, we should make the time to thank them.
That's what Thank You cards are for: they are ways for us seize very
chance we have to make our loved ones feel like loved ones.
By DEANNA DAHLSAD
Posted by photocartoonist at February 22, 2006 12:50 PM