Accidental Blogging

One development my second sight never foresaw was that I would be writing a blog in March 2021.

But then I am not usually locked down in my London home at this time of year. I am normally in rural Bihar, with limited digital access and unlimited stimuli from people, places and ever-shifting circumstances.

Then, there were a series of phone calls. With more time on their hands people were surfing the net to find small charities to which to donate. And the title of my book Outgrowing the Big gave them a clue that I might well have some tips to share on this matter.
One caller sent an email after our phone conversation – ‘thank you for the tips about finding small and unsupported charities, they were so useful and I will tell others.’

Thus, an accidental blogger was born.

So, here are my 5 best ways to find a charity that you deserve and that deserves you.

1.     Put in your key words (e.g. domestic violence/ blind people/ girls’ education) and when the Google pages come up…go straight to around page 10, steering clear of the first few pages. This way the Usual Suspects – the largest charities- will not distract with their expensively presented websites and daunting statistics.

2.     If attracted by an entry, look for a telephone number. Ring it. The chances are that you will speak to a human being who is actually involved in the delivery of the charity’s work rather than a Publicity Officer or someone from a Donations Department with a scripted speech.

3.     Ask plenty of questions. Like -‘exactly what do you spend your money on?’ Don’t be fobbed off by percentages and jargon.

4.     If the charity in question is a registered UK charity, take the trouble to look them up on https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/charity-commission

5.     Return to Google – feed the charity’s name in again + scandal. This may seem like overly suspicious behaviour but this wee bit of investigative research is worth it. Either your confidence in the charity is strengthened. Or not. You can also try doing this with any of the largest charities and see what comes up.

Good luck and thanks for reading my very first blog.
Lucy Mathen

#smalliseffective  #outgrowingthebig #dropthejargon #haloesareaccessories