I need to make a decision..?

Question

I really feel like I need to go and do something with my life. Like I need to make a difference because I feel like I don't make a difference at all right now and I'm just taking up space. Any ideas on what I could start off with?

btw i can't drive ;)

Answer 1

good to make decision in good age -good for yo u  and others age   account for desired result

Answer 2

Look up the name of your city and the world volunteer. There's probably a website with a list of all the volunteer opportunities in your area. I did that and ended up working at a soup kitchen for three years - I loved it!

Or, you can think of something you're passionate about... homelessness, international development, animals, environment, etc, and then search for organizations in your area that may work in those areas. I recently did this as I'm interested in international development. I found MANY organizations in the (large) city I live in. I picked the ones I was interested in and am now volunteering at weekend events, on planning committees for international youth conferences, etc.

Also, I'm going to be volunteering weekly at an animal hospital. We aren't allowed pets in the condo complex I live in so this is my way to spend time with animals until we move later on this year.

Try to spend some time thinking of what issues are important to you, and then research those organizations. It may take a while (I can't tell you how many hours I spent researching international development organizations) but it's so worth it in the end. I've found a lot of things that area really helpful.

Also, you may even find conferences about the issues you're interested in. I'm going to 3 or 4 youth international development conferences on various topics over the next couple of months, and I found those during my research. They will help me make connections in the community. Also, learning more about the different issues will help me (A) narrow my interests/goals and (B) become a better volunteer in these areas.

Good luck! Hopefully you can find something you love. I know how you feel - I often feel very directionless (is that a real word??) because I don't always know what my purpose in life is. This is something I've become very passionate about and I'm feeling so much happier in my every day life.

Answer 3

Follow your heart... there must be something you've always wanted to do.

Answer 4

www.thepencilproject.com

Easy, rewarding and you will be making a HUGE difference!

Answer 5

There are many, many, many ways you can make a difference!  Every day you can go to http://www.thehungersite.com and click the button. The sponsors on the page then donate cups of food for hungry people world-wide. In a 12-month period they donated over 43 million cups and it only takes a second for each person to do and costs nothing!



Then on that site you can go to related sites (breast cancer, child health, literacy, rainforest, and animal rescue) where you can click and sponsors donate acres of rainforest, mammograms, etc. By shopping at the sponsors' sites, even more will be donated to the causes.

At http://www.freerice.com you can play a game of identifying meanings of words. For each correct response, the sponsors of the ads contributes 20 grains of rice.  (It's a fun and addicting site!)

Another way to give to charity without spending any money or volunteering is to use certain search engines. Whenever you do a search, the advertisers pay to a charity - usually you choose which one before searching.

Here's a site that lists a few of these search engines:

http://www.easydonations.net/searchengin...

And one that lists 15 of these search engines:

http://www.doshdosh.com/13-charity-searc...

Find a cause you're passionate about and take action on it.  Flip through a newspaper and see what catches your eye - is it an article on poverty?  illiteracy?  AIDS?  homelessness?  Is it a certain country or region?

Now, as far as taking action on what you're passionate about, there are lots of sites with resources and ideas:

http://www.dosomething.org

http://www.care2.com

http://www.betterworld.net/

http://www.netaid.org/

http://www.change.org/

http://heartsandminds.org/

To make poverty history, go to http://www.one.org if you're in the USA, http://www.makepovertyhistory.ca if you're in Canada, http://www.makepovertyhistory.org if you're in the UK.

Read inspiring books with great ideas in it, such as "Me to We" by Craig & Marc Kielburger (http://www.metowe.org ) and "Giving" by Bill Clinton.

Since you don't drive, perhaps you'd like to volunteer online.  Here are some places to do that:

United Nations:

http://www.onlinevolunteering.org/volunt...

NABUUR - the Global Neighbour Network:

http://www.nabuur.com/modules/homepage/h...

InterConnection:

http://www.interconnection.org/index.php...

VolunteerMatch:

http://www.volunteermatch.org/opportunit...

Make a difference in your own community by committing acts of kindness.  Here are loads of ideas on what you can do:

http://www.payitforwardfoundation.org

http://www.helpothers.org/

http://www.actsofkindness.org/

http://www.kindacts.net/

http://www.extremekindness.com

http://schools.hpedsb.on.ca/smood/kindne...

http://www.thegooddeedsorganisation.com

http://www.daretobeanangel.com

I don't know how old you are, but if you're a student in the States then here's a great resource:  http://www.studentmovementusa.org/

Through them you could join or start a chapter, launch a campaign, become a penpal with student in South Africa, etc.

If you're a student in the States or Canada, you could start a 'Free the Children' chapter in your school. Free the Children, was started by Canadian Craig Kielburger when he was only 12 years old and has turned into a worldwide movement.  For information on starting a 'Youth in Action' group - go to http://www.freethechildren.com/getinvolv...   They've also partnered with Oprah and on her site the groups are called 'O Ambassadors' - http://www.oambassadors.org

As you can see, no shortage of ways you can make a difference in this world!  You are important and the world needs more people like you who care.  I would love to hear what you end up doing so please send me an email if you care to.  All the best to you!

Answer 6

You might start off in YOUR OWN HOME.  Make a difference in your own family.  Help with a project at home.

You have a birthright to "take up space"...we all have  a right to be here.!!!!!!!!!  What can you do to improve your own life at home?

Answer 7

Get a bus pass and contact local charities for volunteer opportunities.

Answer 8

Start with looking through the various web sites that post volunteering opportunities. Just look at the different types of activities that are out there -- what speaks to your heart? What looks half-way interesting? What would you  not be interested in *at all*, and why?

Then, go through the sites again and pick some projects you would like to apply for. It often takes applications to several different organizations before finding a placement:

VolunteerMatch, http://www.volunteermatch.org

Idealist, http://www.idealist.org

Change.org, http://www.change.org

CraigsList, http://www.craigslist.com

Network for Good, http://www.networkforgood.org

http://www.1-800-volunteer.org/

ServeNet, http://servenet.org/

Also, contact your local volunteer center; you can find this via the Points of Light Foundation web site, http://www.pointsoflight.org/centers/

There's also this government sponsored site, http://volunteer.gov/gov/ which provides volunteer positions through USA federal land agencies like Fish & Wildlife, Forest Service, National Parks, etc.

If you want to be a volunteer to help with the consequences of a natural disaster, such as Hurricane Katrina, you need to register and prepare NOW. Here's a web site where you can register and start your preparation so that you can help the next time disaster strikes:

http://www.helpindisaster.org/

Keep a diary about your experiences. The more you volunteer, the more you will know what path you should take.

Ofcourse, for anything you pick, you will need to have transportation -- a bike, walking or mass transit.

One final thing: consider gearing your online profiles on MySpace, FaceBook, etc. to causes you believe in: connect to the profiles of organizations you think are doing great work, subscribe to their email newsletters/blogs, talk about them on your own blog/bulletin, etc.

Answer 9

Do it whatever comes from your heart