Giving increases meaning and happiness

Making an impact and doing something greater than yourself gives a higher motivation and meaning to your life. I experienced this the other day at work. My boss had a medium-sized glass jar filled with coins. He asked each employee to guess how much money was in the jar. Awesome, a competition!! I love a healthy competition. I had no idea how many coins were in the jar; there were 10 cents, 50 cents and many gold coins, but luckily my work colleagues guessed before me, so I had a good benchmark to go off. My guess was $278.34….. 

One week passed and the results were in. I WON by 40 cents – happy was an understatement! The total came to $321.30 + some pounds, dirhams, some euros, and one button. 

The winner got to choose a charity to donate the money to. I chose to give it to the Ronald McDonald house in Randwick. This was one of the best parts of my ‘giving’ experience because the charity meant something to me. Even before I became a parent, I had a strong pull to help unwell children and their families. They go through such a hard time, and being away from their home and creature comforts whilst in hospital makes it even harder. I wanted to give something back. 

In addition to donating, the entire Rise team got to volunteer at the house, cooking for approx 85 people. Although there were some stressful moments, like burning several chicken drumsticks on the BBQ, and co-ordinating what went in-and-out of the four ovens at what times, it was a great team building experience. More so, it was humbling and inspiring to see the strength of the families dealing with such difficulties. It made me feel extremely grateful for my own health, as well as the health of my three year old son. 

As part of the Rise framework to feel ‘good’ and have meaning at work, there are seven areas that need to be satisfied. One of the areas (or what we call meaning bubbles) is ‘making an impact.’ Helping others and making a difference to the community. Giving this donation and volunteering has given me greater satisfaction and happiness at work, and in life. It was a meaningful experience. I’m thankful I won and had the opportunity to give.

Author: Kristie Taylor, Rise Head of Marketing