The Surprising Way to Help Others Who Need It

We’re wrong about how to help people who need it. In fact, when I heard this I stopped in my tracks. 

Since co-founding our non-profit, DEUCE Community Inc., I’ve met some of the best people who are doing the most important social work on the planet. One of whom is Sarah Hemminger, who is a scientist and co-founder of her non-profit, Thread. Thread is tackling some of the most dramatic opportunity and achievement gaps for young people in Baltimore. 

Sarah is brilliant. She’s truly on another intellectual playing field, so when she humbly shared this remarkable data about her organization it hit me like a ton of bricks. Here’s the gist. Her organization’s volunteers begin building rapport with young people from their program in Baltimore who are on the verge of flunking out of school and really need help.

Some (but not all) of their help includes some very pedestrian efforts like giving students a ride to and from class and other life responsibilities. This was all fine and dandy, but trust remained unremarkable between their customer (the young person) and the provider (the driver).

There was an unexpected inflection point. 

What the organization learned is that the relationship changed not with the helping efforts of the provider, but only after the provider said something very surprising and specific to their client: “I need your help.”

I was mind blown. The power here lies in the human desire to connect, collaborate, and ultimately help. After all, what could empower and build rapport with another human more than to vulnerably ask them for help?