Give a little bit

Recently I had a chat with someone who’s been furloughed by their employer and feels really lost and lonely, while also feeling guilty that her colleagues are busier than they’ve ever been. With more than 70% of UK employers furloughing staff as the scheme went live this week, I imagine this is a common feeling. It’s hard for line managers too but it’s important to keep in touch with your furloughed team members during this time. They can’t do work for you while on furlough but I’m sure they would appreciate an informal catch-up. I found some useful tips for communicating with furloughed workers here.

This prompted me to host a conversation about fundraiser wellbeing on Fundraising Chat. Taking care of the nation’s mental health, alongside its physical health, has never been more important. There are some useful resources for managing your own and your teams’ mental health while working from home here. And this Facebook group has been set up by psychotherapists, psychologists and counsellors to offer a free 20 minute online consultation to those who need it. The glue of community is working hard in Stockwell too.

This theme of community was highlighted by the Stephen Lawrence Trust this week. Stephen Lawrence Day highlights Stephen’s life and legacy.

Learning points:

We’re all spending far more time than is probably healthy on Zoom and Teams. I came across the #whitezooms challenge on Twitter and lay out the gauntlet to you as you look at your screens. Maybe even take the White Privilege Test.

What am I reading?

This week I re-read this report about the future of the charity sector published by Kivo Transformation. Even though it was published last summer - in a different world - many of the themes are relevant to how the sector could/should respond to the new future. A key point the report writers make is that too often it’s simply inertia that prevents necessary change. Covid-19 has swept inertia away.

What am I listening to?

I came across Tim Burgess’ Twitter Listening Party this week. I’m sure there’s something for everyone in here. What a public servant!

Joy-giving things

Knowing what a difficult time most of us are having at the moment, I was over-joyed by Lauren Laverne’s Radio 6 Music programme this week which she dedicated to charity workers and fundraisers. It meant a lot and I admit to having a tear in my eye as she read out tributes to charities and our work.

This is one of the tracks she played. It brought back memories of my Supertramp phase. Which would have been fine if I hadn’t been having it in Manchester in 1986 when I should have been going to the Hacienda 😳

Happy weekend, everyone!