Being called a 'do gooder' is not nice. That horrible phrase is sometimes used by unpleasant characters who feel a need to criticise anyone who makes an effort to help others. These nasty people can sometimes make it feel like the world is split into two: one large group of people who selflessly believe in helping others and another smaller group who don't believe in compassion or care.
Those two conflicted groups can be united though!
Helping others and improving their ability to engage really doesn't have to be a selfless act. Helping others is in everyone's interest. This is because:
1. Having people on the streets costs our economy huge amounts of money in healthcare and social care
2. People who've fallen out of the system could become active workers and community members - directly contributing money and skills for everyone's benefit
Getting people off the streets is in literally everyone's interest and the whole of society needs to learn that. It's because of this that I believe homelessness charities should alter their marketing campaigns to reflect the social and economic good they can do.
Actively helping others to make a better life can be a very selfish act that does a lot of good!
Thanks for reading this.
Andy Preston