What it means to really care

kidsShowing that you truly care about a cause isn’t based upon whether or not you help out in the face of a crisis, it’s about doing the right thing on a daily basis. We recently had the good fortune to work with the Empire Health Foundation (EHF) of Spokane Washington, where we conducted a Wisdom Discovery session on how to be a great EHF healthcare program manager. Although, the content of the program was excellent, it was the participant’s attitudes during the Discovery session that was remarkable. All of them had a long history of commitment to social service and exuded genuine happiness toward helping others. They enjoyed sharing their limited resources to make life better for the “under-served” populations. The employees didn’t get paid very much, so they certainly weren’t motivated by money. They were helping others because it was the right thing to do. It’s the type of thing we all hear from any community following a catastrophic disaster – “We are all pulling together to help those negatively affected by the event.” Except, the EHF workers help others every day, regardless of the circumstances. It is interesting, how people are applauded for helping out in a crisis, but society becomes less interested when asked to pay for it on a daily basis. Why is charity so often crisis driven? Working with the EHF felt like good old-fashioned, progressive liberalism but, it goes far beyond that into sound economic and social values. For example, they are currently working on finding ways to provide an aging rural population with better healthcare. Right now, rural areas are struggling with a severe shortage of doctors and hospitals because neither are economically viable. Not too long ago one of the states that declined to expand Medicare saw a sharp rise in closures of rural hospitals which led to a decrease in rural care. The policies ended up forcing aging rural populations into cities where they could get the care they need, thus forcing them to move away from their family and loved ones. EHF is currently working on programs that will get care to these aging rural populations, allowing them to stay in their home. This Discovery session is a good example of what it means to be a Star – achieving something greater than yourself. A big part of what we do is to help organizations’ discover a compelling purpose and live by it. At EHF they already live by their compelling purpose, all we did was help convert it into efficient actions. It was a privilege and an honor to be a part of something greater. When was the last time you helped someone out… just because?]]>

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