5 Things I Learned from Volunteering

I've been fortunate enough to teach in South Africa, build a home in Haiti, and prepare meals for hungry kids in Nepal.   

The people I met from all my travels became a compass steering me towards a life of purpose. 

In the process, I redefined what was important to me and tried to live in accordance with my core values.  

Along the way I discovered five things that have served me to this day:

• There will always be someone in the world worse off then you.
• Where ever you go there will always be people who need help. 
• Your quality of service to others informs the quality of your life.
• The human condition is the universal link that binds us together.  
• The only true and indispensable currency is love.  

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   What You Can Do
    
    Find ways you can be of service to someone else. Remember, it doesn't have to be on a grand scale. 

Perhaps you can tutor for an hour a week, volunteer at a soup kitchen, or teach someone a skill that you already possess.

    When we lift each other up attainment of our goals become much more about impact rather than self-importance. Service to others gives integrity to our ambition.

    It's about BECOMING more rather than simply gaining more.

Figure out What You Want and Ask for It

Make the call. Most people don’t take initiative. Steve Jobs said no one he ever reached out to for help ever refused. He simply asked.

Years ago as I was sitting on the sofa of my cramped New York apartment my friend was pounding away at my laptop. He was make inquiry after inquiry looking for opportunities to get in his foot in the door. Just as he was about close shop he checked one last email before mumbling something under his breath, "You'd be amazed what you can get out of life if you just ask." That inadvertent piece of advice has become the single most influential insight of my life. And to think, I wasn't even supposed to hear it!

Here's my brief track record of simply asking:

-- Worked as an intern at a major news station in the San Francisco Bay Area and got to interview several members of the Oakland A's and San Francisco Giants. I was only 19.

-- Volunteered for a New York City Council Member and was allowed to attend meetings and events not open to the public. I learned a great deal about the nuances of city government.

-- Became a casting reader for major television networks and Broadway, reading opposite stars of the stage and screen.

-- Spent time at an orphanage in Haiti.

-- Spoke at a TEDx Event by asking the coordinator if they still needed speakers.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VSAgO3sPBog&t=517s

-- Acted in a feature film I was only supposed to be a production assistant for

Figure out what it is you want and ask for it. The worst that can happen pales in comparison to what doors may open if you make the call.

Keep On Keepin' On

Last night I went to see a friend perform in a terrific play called, The Last Tiger in Haiti - a remarkable narrative of survival, betrayal, and the power of storytelling.

After the show I waited for my friend to meet me in the lobby. As I made my towards her I heard my name called, "Nick Maccarone?" What a strange name, is often my first thought.

I turned to a young woman I hadn't seen since high school. I discovered she was performing in the repertory's other theater in a wildly popular show called, It Can't Happen here.

We caught up briefly as people approached her offered congratulatory remarks and accolades on her performance as my friend looked on.

Eventually, I said goodbye wondering the next time we'd ever see each other. But I also marveled at how far she'd come. She was never the lead in any of our high school productions, (neither was I) she generally kept a low profile, and I had no clue she was currently an actress - that it was something she even wanted to pursue when we were teenagers.

Now, here she was performing in a highly successful show in one of the finest regional theaters in the country. She also told me she'd just made the big move to New York.

Amazing what you can achieve when you want something bad enough and you're consistent in your measures to get it.

*  The Last Tiger of Haiti is working to support the Hurricane Matthew relief efforts in Haiti. If you'd like to contribute here are the two organizations they are currently working with. Every little bit helps.

http://www.restavekfreedom.org/

http://www.lambifund.org/

A Strange Thing Happened...

A few years after drama school I began to feel a sense of emptiness. I questioned my work as an actor, even its meaning - two events that had never occurred. Telling stories was all I cared to do since I was a little boy. What did it all mean? I wondered. Who was this all for? Why should the world care? 

Like many young actors, I was idealistic and thought I could change the world with a monologue, or a compelling scene. It was why I wanted to be an actor in the first place; to make some small dent in society by influencing or changing the way one thought.

As I seemed to drift further and further away from this disposition, I found myself willing myself to fall back in love with acting. It sounds strange, but I even resented myself for not wanting to do it. After all, I'd worked so hard to get through a conservatory and made sacrifices to give this dream a real go.

In time, I discovered this hollowness was a result of focusing too much on myself. It was all about me. I was tired of hearing my own voice.

Then I decided to volunteer in my community. First, as a mentor at a high school in Queens. Soon after, I was giving resume workshops at Coalition for the Homeless, making beds at a shelter, and delivering speeches on public speaking. A few years later I was doing similar work in South Africa, Nepal, and Haiti.

When I returned I felt rejuvenated. Service to others had also given me perspective on the bigger picture. I no longer lived and died on each audition. And the funny thing is, I actually became a better actor. Go figure.