January 2012

Can we teach old dogs new tricks?

by Vanessa on 26 January 2012

old dogI was confronted to read recently that a Sydney modeling agency had advised one of their young models, who incidentally is the ripe old age of 16, that she was becoming too old to model.  Apparently, as a society, we are now recruiting models as young as 13 because at 16, they are past their used-by date.

After I calmed down, I started thinking about whether or not we are ever too old to tackle something new.  How does our age impact upon our potential to grow, learn or try something new?

Whilst I like to consider myself as someone who continues to grow, remain open to new ideas and extend myself, I must admit that the older I get, the more set in my ways I become and the less ‘flexible’ I find myself. 

What is it that prevents us from wanting to learn new skills, make new friends or travel to new places?  Is it confidence?  Is it fear?  Is it stubbornness? Or, is it past experience?

Our previous experiences can impact enormously on our willingness to ‘put ourselves out there’ again.  Anyone who has experienced a relationship break down will be familiar with the phrase ‘never again’. 

With this in mind, consider a young person who has been miserable at school.  For whatever reason, the mainstream school environment has not agreed with them.   No wonder they are so hesitant to go back into a learning environment.  Someone who has had a car accident is obviously challenged by getting behind the wheel again.

So, I pose the question: can we teach old, or young dogs, new tricks? 

It might sound naive but I believe we can.  I try to remember that “many roads lead to Rome”.  By that I mean that not everyone does the same thing at the same time.  We don’t all have to travel the same path to reach the same destination. We all do things at our own pace and maybe maturity or a period of separation from a task or challenge can reinvigorate our passion or willingness. Staying positive and focusing on strengths rather than preventions or challenges can keep our minds open to success and change.

Now, this old dog is off to try something new.

 

People can tip towards change

by Sunisa on 31 January 2012

There’s an interesting model of philanthropy here in San Francisco. I popped in to talk to Tipping Point Community, a network that funnels money from people to selected charities. They make their decisions based on measurable impact, clear finances, and strong leadership. And get this: the board of Tipping Point underwrites all the operational cost of the organization. That means that they each contribute annually so that 100% of donations made go to the groups they’ve selected as poverty-fighting organizations.

I chatted with the communications team about two nonprofits that work with young people. First Place for Youth (FPFY) has been a Tipping Point Grantee since 2005. They help former foster youth transition to independent living. As we know at STREAT, there’s a very vulnerable stage that happens when young people come out of foster care. If the transition is unsuccessful for a person, it can lead to unemployment, homelessness, health problems and poverty.

FPFY offers much of the same cocktail of intervention that STREAT does: case management, drop-in training, communication workshops, and job placement assistance. Tipping Point leveraged their connections to also provide staff training, strategic planning, and technology consultation to FPFY.

The second charity is a newer grantee. Gateway to College National Network (GtC) works with students who have dropped out of high school or are likely to. They help students get their high school diploma, and some of the classes even count towards college credit. GtC students have an average attendance rate of 82%, heaps higher than their previous performance.

As Tipping Point’s founder and CEO asks, “If we don’t fix what’s broken in our back yard, who will?”

That’s a question that STREAT cares about too, which is why our CEO Bec Scott brought the STREAT model back from Vietnam to apply it to our needy urban population.

Thanks for tuning in to a case study from abroad!