Today's post is written by Chelsea Murphy, Communications Coordinator at Points of Light.  An avid sports enthusiast, she likes doing good through buying fair trade coffee and recycling daily.

Yesterday I watched a TEDx talk by Tony Robbins. TED is a nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It started out as a conference bringing people together from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, and Design. Today you can find archives of talks on almost any topic you can imagine.  Below is Tony Robbin's talk called "Why Do We Do What We Do?"

I encourage everyone to take 20 minutes out of their day to watch Tony's talk. It's worth it.  He disects the reasoning behind human actions, beliefs, and drive. It's a thought provoking and inspiring video that ties us all together when at times we can think we are so different, we all deep down need and want the same things. It makes you appreciate reasons why people do what they do.

Tony's belief is that we are run by emotions. Period. And there are needs of the individual that are similar for everyone:

• We need certainty
• We need uncertainty (otherwise things would be boring and predictable)
• We need significance (to feel special, different, and unique)
• and we need connection & love (most people settle for connection because love is too scary because it hurts)

There are also needs of fullfillment that we all seek in every day actions:

• We need growth (the reason we grow is so we have something of meaning to give)
• and we need to contribute beyond ourselves (It’s all about giving. It’s not about me, it’s about us)

All of these instances tie to volunteering. Through volunteering you want to provide the certainty of a home cooked meal, more certainty of a safer community environment, or through tutoring find certainty of better education for a child.  As a volunteer you can find significance and connection through volunteering and reaching out to help others.

Volunteering creates personal growth as well as community growth. Both the individual and the community benefits.  The volunteer finds what they are passionate about and contributes beyond themselves to make the world a better place.  Through volunteering you can find fullfillment.

Did you enjoy the talk? Do you agree with Tony or have other beliefs how volunteering fits into Tony's beliefs? Share with us in comments!