Be The Mosquito!

“If you think you are too small to be effective, you have never been in bed with a mosquito.” – Betty Reese

In the current environment, as the days slowly tick by and an underlying sense of fear seems unavoidable, it is easy to feel helpless and yearn for the recent past when things were ‘normal’. I know I often do! Inevitably, however, as my thoughts spiral towards negativity, I come across a story of kindness and hope which reminds me that we are resilient – we will get through this (and dare I say, be a stronger society as a result).

A few such stories have even come from our clients! One client just signed up via TapRoot to help two small businesses navigate the cumbersome process of applying for CARES financing. I love how he tapped into his finance skill set and found a creative way to give back, all from the comfort of his couch! In addition to being the right thing to do, it will add a valuable talking point to his applications, which are otherwise light on extracurricular involvement.

Another client recently became a volunteer with Meals On Wheels, delivering food to homebound people in his local community. While the need for this service always existed, demand has exploded lately, as you can imagine. Further, I think we all have a newfound appreciation for how isolation can wreak havoc on the spirit and how a warm smile or kind gesture can truly make one’s day. This client’s act of service tapped into his passion for health and wellness, while serving as a valuable update for Kellogg, where he is waitlisted.

A third client, who works at a company in the consumer finance space, jumped on the opportunity to join a team working to defer customers’ payment obligations. She leveraged her strong communication and team building skills to unite a virtual group around this common goal, providing needed relief in a time when so many are struggling to make ends meet. She shared the story of the team’s success (they rolled out a deferral program in less than a month!) in an update to HBS, where she is waitlisted, and further connected how she plans to leverage the learnings from this experience in a potentially-virtual learning environment next year.

So while it is easy to feel overwhelmed by the scale of the challenges we currently face, remember that we all have skills that can be put to use. We may even find that one of the greatest beneficiaries of our good work is ourselves, whether that be emotionally or in the realization of our goals. Be that mosquito and leave your mark – it may be small in the grand scheme of things, but (at least) one person will take note and that is enough. Stay safe everyone.