Is Making a Difference Something Only for the Future?

Have you ever thought that the work you do is something to endure until some time in the future when you will have the means or the time to pursue your true calling? Are you too busy to find meaning in your life or to make the world a better place? You don’t need to wait — every day is an opportunity to change the world!

I was recently told the story of a restaurant that opened not too long ago here in Manhattan. I don’t know anyone directly involved in this business- so I am sharing this story because I found it illustrated the point better than any other example I can think of. The place is called P.S.Kitchen and it’s a Vegan Restaurant in Hell’s Kitchen. There are a number of things inspiring about this restaurant:

1. Their employees are all people who are somehow marginalized by society- homeless, formerly incarcerated, with substance abuse issues etc. It is incredibly difficult for someone who has faced these challenges to become employed again, so it is awesome that P.S. Kitchen is successfully employing this population.
2. All of the profits are donated to charities in the US and around the globe.
3. It’s Vegan- which for some people makes a difference from a societal perspective.

The really cool thing (which is in part a function of #2 above) is that the owners have full time jobs, which is why they don’t take the profits for themselves. As I understand it, they work here in New York City but were looking for a way to really have an impact on the world. And wow, what an impressive undertaking to really transform lives!

I am not raising this to say that we all need to stretch ourselves in the way that these people have — but imagine the world if we did? What I got out of hearing about P.S. Kitchen is the following:

1. There is always more that I can be doing to give back — and finding ways to stretch myself in this area is important. It also requires focus. P.S. Kitchen didn’t happen by accident, and nothing worthwhile that we do will either.
2. Creativity goes a long way. In the normal course of work and life (let’s say you have a demanding job and a family that requires a lot of time) it may not be possible to actually carve out time for something additional- but perhaps finding volunteer opportunities with your kids, or working within your company to find ways to give back to the community (almost every company has some philanthropic group you can join).
3. The folks who founded P.S. Kitchen didn’t wait until they were retired, they found a way to fulfill a bigger purpose in parallel with their day job. I know tons of people who do this in a bunch of smaller ways that are also very impactful. One person I know is an accountant and she helps people figure out their financial lives for free. Once recently she was in an Uber and the driver was telling her about his money problems and she arranged a time to meet with him to help in go through and analyze his situation, which was incredibly helpful to him.

What about the thousands of interactions that we have every day, with our coworkers, with vendors and cashiers, with our kids and spouses, and just everybody? What if taking a few extra moments to really listen to someone, or smile at them, or offer an encouraging word is what they need? None of that costs money or takes extra time. A wise man once said that ever action we take is either a step towards our goal (in this case to find fulfillment through realizing a bigger goal) or a step away from it. If we want to add value to the world, we can take these small steps towards our goals- and make the world a better place!