Sunita Varlamos is Program Manager, Projects at Leadership Victoria, a not-for-profit organisation which runs leadership development programs designed to foster outstanding leaders and identify and address community issues.
In this interview with Trevor Young, Sunita provides information on Leadership Victoria and similar organisations in other states, and explains how not-for-profit groups can tap into the skills and experience of professional people wanting to give back to the community.
Sunita’s advice to PlanBiggers includes the importance of seeking out organisations like Leadership Victoria, understanding where gaps exist in your organisation, and knowing how you’re going to use volunteer experts prior to approaching them.
Every year my mum and I save our money to go to the Happiness & Its Causes conference. The conference brings together science, philosophy, spirituality, psychology and people’s own stories to answer the question “what makes us happy?” It’s the only conference where I’ve been asked to bring a shawl1.
The documentary film Happy, told us we can train to be happier; 50% of our happiness is determined by our genes, only 10% by our circumstances and 40% we determine through our thoughts and actions (the stuff we can control):
I keep a checklist of practical tactics on how to increase happiness and have applied some of them my own life to spectacular results. Implementing them will make you happier, more productive, and free you up to spend more time with your friends and family.
Volunteer
Heyyo, it’s national volunteer week so it’s the perfect time to investigate ways that you can help. Last year I wrote a blog about the QLD and Victorian floods and at the time experts were saying at that time the best thing you could do was to give money, because unskilled volunteers can sometimes hinder more than help. Now is the time to get skilled.
Volunteering helps you to look outside yourself to focus on something other than the problems in your life. I’m a volunteer director of a Community Bank branch and we feed thousands of dollars back into the community through grants and sponsorships. Last year we granted $10,000 to pay for a speech therapy program in a local primary school to help children from non-English speaking backgrounds who were struggling in class. It’s a great feeling to give my time, learn new skills, and be a part of something bigger than my group of friends.
Journal Gratitude
This concept came up on one of the panels at the conference last year. I’ve set up an app on my phone where every night before I go to bed, I list 3 things I was grateful for that happened during the day. Some entries have included this video of a cat vs. static electricity, being grateful for beers in the sun with my friends on a Sunday afternoon and graffiti like this:
I also write down the compliments I receive so I remember them. It’s made me happier and more appreciative when good things happen.
At the conference this year Dr Martin Seligman, Director of the Positive Psychology Center at the University of Pennsylvania, suggested to take it a step further and write down three things that went well during the day and why you think they did. I tried that for a few nights and it was cumbersome so I broke my habit. I went back to cat videos and when people said my hair looked good.
Meditate
“Your title said practical!” you cry.
Meditation is backed by research. Check out Matthieu Ricard, biochemist and Buddhist monk on the Habits of Happiness.
The most refreshing thing that I’ve learnt about meditation from Happiness and Its Causes is that you don’t have to be perfect at it right away. It’s something that takes practice, and the only way to get better at quietening your mind is by practicing it.
Give Away Your Money
Check out this research by Elizabeth Dunn at the University of British Columbia: “Dunn’s team gave 46 other students envelopes containing a either $5 bill or a $20 bill and told them how to spend it, those who shelled out on others (donating to charity or giving a gift) were happier at the end of the day than those who blew it on themselves (to pay a bill or indulge in a treat).” Larger surveys in the United States showed “happiness correlated with the amount of money people spent on others rather than the absolute amount of the bonus or income.” (Science Now)
Peter Singer, the Australian philosopher, blew my mind talking about The Life You Can Save. He asks you to pledge a small percentage of your income to fight global poverty. It’s your responsibility to research organisations that are using their funds effectively and with tools like charitynavigator.org it’s easier than ever.
On the most basic level, it’s a relief when I encounter obnoxious German travellers2 who ask me to sign up to charities at the train station that I can say that I already contribute regularly, thanks, and please stop talking at me.
These four things that have worked for me, and in small ways have created a big change in my attitude. I hope they work for you, or at least get you thinking about your 40%. As Rob Schneider says“you can do it!”
____ 1I’m not the usual demographic, in one of the emails leading up to the conference said to bring a shawl or light jacket because of the airconditioning; it makes me smile every time I think about it. 2They’re not all obnoxious and they’re not all German but you get who I’m talking about
