Posts tagged nonprofit

Last week, I had the privilege of speaking to approximately 35 students at Irving Place High School about Trip of a Lifetime. Many of the students I spoke to were aspiring student leaders themselves, taking on initiatives such as planning trips to a soup kitchen, creating a community garden, and even raising money at their high school. Their determination to make a difference really inspired me and I want to dedicate this blog post to every student leader I have met. Below are five pieces of advice I would give to any student looking to become a catalyst for change in their communities.

1) Be Yourself - Let your personality shine. Others may be participating in the same community service activities as you but no one else will leave that activity with your perspective

2) Follow Your Passions - If you are not passionate about what you are working on, the lack of dedication will show. Participate in activities and issues you care about and will give the most time and effort to.

3) Don’t Be Afraid To Ask - The difference between a successful project and one that is not as successful is simply using the resources around you. When you are working on a project, feel free to ask anyone for help and advice, even people you may not know. Kindly email or call people you want to speak to and you would be amazed at the outpouring of support.

4) Use The Web To Connect With Others- One of the greatest aspects of social media is its ability to connect people from around the world with like-minded interests. Some websites to check out (besides the usual Facebook and Twitter) are DoSomething.org, Randomkid.org, and JUMO.org. 

5) Use The Web To Develop and Create - My favorite website I have come accross while working on Trip of a Lifetime is Weebly.com. Weebly.com is a simple, free website creator that allows anyone to make a website in only a couple of minutes. There is no practically no learning curve as the entire website is made using drag and drop functionality. You can add pictures, videos, text, and widgets to your site to make your community service project come to life 

Come back next week for the next five tips. If you have any questions about your community service project, feel free to email me at srosenberg@projecttoal.org.

Today, while checking our Facebook and Twitter feeds, I noticed a surprising amount of chatter about Trip of a Lifetime. After looking closer, I noticed an article on MTV Act, a blog by MTV that mentions stories of student empowerment about my efforts with Trip of a Lifetime. Unlike most press coverage Trip of a Lifetime receives, this was a complete surprise to us. This kind of coverage is great, as it shows people are interested in the cause and want to help spread the word as quickly as possible. We hope to continue the success we are having and be picked up by more blogs in the future.

In addition, the article in Tuesday’s Wall Street Journal has lead to 135 official Facebook Shares, 35 Twitter Shares, and mentions on NYU Stern’s Social Media Outlets and multiple travel blogs. We are also about to close two corporate partnerships, neither of which would have been possible if it wasn’t for the publicity generated from the article. It is truly humbling to me the outpouring of support Trip of a Lifetime is receiving.