Volunesia Diaries – Taking Management Lessons From First Graders!
One of our dedicated volunteers, Sneha, wrote about our first Volunesia at Brindavan Tent School on her blog. We loved her post so much that we just had to share it with you all.
Last Saturday, we had the chance to work with the students of Brindavan Tent School in Vignan Nagar, Bangalore, as part of Volunesia. To give you a brief background of the event, Volunesia was started by a group of volunteers coming together once every week to make goodies out of recycled/waste products. These goodies would then be distributed to students in various underprivileged schools as rewards for their good work and progress. What started off as morning sessions on Saturdays in Bangalore’s iconic Cubbon Park, has now evolved into focused activities at the Brindavan Tent School with students who also take part and learn a little something along the way.
This week’s theme was Cleanliness and we decided to make dustbins out of discarded cardboard boxes that the students could take home with them. After all, cleanliness begins at home! The students were from Classes I to IV and I was assigned a couple of Grade I kids, along with another volunteer. It was a wonderful two-hour session at the end of which we, the volunteers, were left both super exhilarated and tired at the same time. Along with all the obvious energy that seemed to us like a high-intensity workout (no kidding!), these kids ended up teaching us a few subtle but important lessons, ones that I will be taking to work every single day:
Be Accepting Of All Ideas (But Don’t Hesitate To Offer Your Suggestions)
As soon as the cardboard boxes were handed over to us, the students began wondering how to get started and approached us for ideas. But in under 2 minutes, all that changed. Soon, they were suggesting the number of stars we needed to stick on one side or what to draw on the other. They were calling the shots and every time it was implemented they made sure to inform us whether or not they liked it.
Yes, it is safe to stick to the original plan and would also save time and a lot of back-and-forth conversations. However, what if while executing your project, you come across an idea that you may want to try? Would it work? Would it jeopardise the existing schedule? These are all valid questions but what if – just what if – there was real value in it? Shouldn’t we at least explore these options?
Scarcity Of Resources Is Only An Illusion
As a rule, we always carry a limited number of scissors, glue, etc, for our Volunesia sessions. It gives us an opportunity to interact with the volunteers especially since we are meeting most of them for the first time. It is the perfect conversation starter. So, we had limited stationary as per usual, which would have been fine if we didn’t have to also manage the kids. It was becoming a little difficult for us to try and source what we needed from our counterparts. The kids, however, had already started reaching out to their friends in other groups for their favourite colour crayons, Fevicol tubes or paper. They even knew what they could offer in exchange for what they needed. Talk about effective bartering!
How many times do we let go of ideas or delay our projects citing dependencies or low supply of resources? If only we would roll up our sleeves and start collaborating.
If You’re Done With Your Assignment, Try And Contribute Elsewhere
We started out with groups of 3-5 kids per volunteer, but once some of the students were done with their beautiful dustbins, they did not want to sit idle. They started looking around for other groups that needed help cutting, sticking, painting, and what not! If there were unfinished dustbins left, these children were working to ensure all of it was completed within the given time.
Most of us, while working in teams get so involved in what’s assigned to us that we fail to see the bigger picture. We forget that each individual’s contribution will only matter if the entire project was a success. Let’s make sure we reach out and be that extra hand/brain that our team requires.
Once You’re Done, Move On!
In around 2 hours, all the boxes were transformed into colourful dustbins. We then began our usual process of salvaging all the remaining materials to use for upcoming sessions. While we were busy assembling all this, the children got back to doing what they do best – playing on the ground. We literally had to bring them together again, and after a bit of a struggle, tell them what a fantastic job they had done. They heard us, smiled, clapped patiently, and then as soon as we stopped talking, ran outside to resume their games. We volunteers, on the other hand, were so happy and proud of the small steps we had taken that day, spent a good half hour discussing how nice it felt to have a purpose, no matter how trivial it may seem.
While it may be good to debrief and discuss the various great and (ahem!) not-so-great aspects of the project once it is completed, many of us hold on to it for a long time. If something went wrong, we break our heads over it, feeling guilty or looking for others to blame. And if something turned out great, we keep reliving that success. Wouldn’t it just be better not to linger for too long and start fresh each time?
Smile, And Then Smile Some More
These children were in school on a Saturday morning at a time when most of us wouldn’t even have woken up. And they were asked to make something with people whom they were meeting for the very first time. Yet, there was not a single bit of reluctance from their side. Just happy, non-judgmental faces and hearts, excited about what they were about to do and looking for ways to contribute.
As Ketut instructs Liz in ‘Eat Pray Love’, “Smile with face, smile with mind, and good energy will come to you and clear away dirty energy. Even smile in your liver.” Do this and watch the magic unfold automatically.
P.S: The author is currently learning basic Kannada from her colleagues that would help her communicate better with the students of the school. It’s all about Give and Take.
Liked reading this? Then you might also like to read Volunesia Diaries –Musings On The Journey So Far!
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