There isn’t a single one of us that hasn’t thought about ways to make their community a better place. Thankfully, there is no shortage of options to make improvements to our neighborhoods or our country, and if you are going to look for a way to make a positive difference, there is no question that you are pursuing a worthy goal. However, you need to ask yourself some very important questions before you get started on your journey to make the world a better place.
Ask Yourself What Do You Want to Do?
Improving your community is difficult if you aren’t sure what that means. However, there’s good news in that if you know your community needs to be bettered, odds are good that you already have some ideas about how you want to make that happen. Is there a park that needs improvement? A dangerous intersection that needs major pedestrian improvements? A homeless population that is not having their needs met?
Once you have answers that question, you’re probably going to be in a better position to address some of the issues that remain. In many cases, there may already be groups that are dedicated toward solving the issues that you have found, and that’s great, as it means a structure is already in place that can help you address the problem you have discovered. Sometimes, however, you have to get involved and create a group from scratch that is dedicated toward addressing these needs. That means a longer fight but may mean that you can make an even bigger difference.
Make Charitable Contributions
The truth is that there are countless non-profits that are hurting and that could use more donations -especially now. You may want to rearrange your finances so you can give more, but are not sure how to free up the cash to make that happen. Thankfully, there are ways you can do just that. You can lower your monthly expenses by auditing your own budget and finding the non-essential items you can remove. Furthermore, you can look into refinancing your existing student loans. A student loan refinance may be a great way to save money on your college loans, pay them off faster, and free up more cash to make critical donations to local non-profits.
Survey Your Neighbors
In many cases, one of the most important things you can realize is that you don’t have all of the answers. That’s not a bad thing at all. In fact, coming to this realization is one of the most important things you can do in your journey to make a positive community difference, as it can force you to talk to your neighbors, get their advice, and confirm that what you think is the best way to improve your community is a shared vision with the people with whom you share your community. You don’t need a formal survey or poll, of course. Instead, Email or text your friends, and ask them what they think your community really needs.