The 30 Day Sharing Challenge, Week #2!

I’m now halfway through my 30 Day Sharing Challenge for November, and here’s how I’ve been getting on so far!

You can check my daily tweets on what I’ve been up to, and here’s some more info on my second week.

And by way of reminder, here are the sharing challenges I’ll be doing on each day;

Day 8 – an outfit

For day 8, I had planned on doing one thing, and ended up doing another!

I had intended to try something out a bit different – a new sharing economy website called
Rentez-Vous. Fashionista Fiona started the company to allow a peer-to-peer clothing rental service, allowing you to borrow outfits and accessories from others (even from designers!) so that you’ve always got the perfect things to wear.

There’s an estimated £1.6bn worth of unworn clothes in women’s wardobes throughout the UK, so it seems like an easy thing to try out! But, unfortunately, the outfit didn’t arrive in time and so I reverted to plan b.

Plan b was to donate an outfit I no longer wear to a charity shop, for a new good home! I had a collection bag already for the British Heart Foundation, and filled it with items that I dropped off at my local store.

And, of course, I filled out the gift aid form. It only took me 30 seconds and lets the charity claim an extra 28p for each £1 raised from my donation. If you don’t know how gift aid works, click here to read more and learn how you could help out further!

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Day 9 – a home-cooked meal

I thought long and hard on what exactly to do for day 9, as domestic goddess and skilled chef, I am not. So, rather than make someone sit through a meal they wouldn’t really enjoy, I instead decided to spend my evening volunteering to help at The People’s Picnic. TPP was started by Dale and Karen, who used to prepare sandwiches in their kitchen and drive them into Norwich in the evenings to give out to the homeless and hungry. Since then, it’s definitely grown – now offering a range of home-cooked hot meals, rolls, and desserts twice a week.

The evening I volunteered had sausage and chips, meatball pasta (with a veggie option) and cottage pie on the menu, and we had about 40 people come along to eat. It was a good atmosphere, with everyone friendly and chatty, and although cold and a bit drizzly, the meals went down a treat! It really struck me how lovely everyone was to each other – there was a real sense of community.

If you’ve batch-cooked and have some spare to share, or would like to go and help out for a couple of hours one evening, you can join the volunteers group on Facebook. Or, if you’re not in Norwich, find your local Foodcycle hub, check out Foodchain in London, or search for a cooking volunteer opportunity in your area. If you’d like to try something new, why not check out Grub Club?

I can honestly say that working with these guys was my most heartwarming, enjoyable experience so far, and I’ll volunteer with them again. Definitely recommended!

Day 10 – a walk

Sharing a walk fell on a very fortunate day for me, as Liftshare aim to get all employees out and about for a team walk once a quarter. And, as luck would have it, one was scheduled right in time!

We walked from our office in Norwich down to Drayton (about 5/6 miles each way), then stopped at a hotel to talk shop, make plans for 2016, and have a spot of lunch, before heading back to HQ. It was a great day with lots of getting-to-know-each-other-better, joking and chatting. And great to get out of the office and into a different headspace for a day!

Day 11 – a fact

Fact sharing could be a fun fact, life hack or tip. I want to draw your attention to a previous blog that I wrote for Liftshare – 10 hacks to make your car journey easier! It’s a fun little blog to share, and perfect for liftsharers. Learn how to clean your headlights with toothpaste, hang a parking guide in your garage and avoid congestion.

Of course, feeling inspired, you can follow my lead and turn up to your liftshare with the gift of a tube of colgate. I’m sure your driver will understand…! 🙂

Day 12 – a smile

Day 12, which was a Thursday, could have been interpreted in loads of different ways, but I decided to connect with someone I don’t get to see every day, and FaceTimed my little sister Esme.

Esme lives and works in South London, and I’m up in Norwich, so I don’t see as much as her I’d like… and not enough that we annoy each other too much! I interrupted her a little, as she was getting ready for a hockey training session, but we had a quick chat and she gave me a tour around her new flat. And there were smiles all round!

World Kindness Day was the 13th, so share a smile came just in time for that. Even if you missed WKD, why not take part a RAOK (random act of kindness) now, or offer a lift to help someone out getting to and from wherever they need to go? Although I love the idea of the day, it definitely shouldn’t be limited to a one-off, and I’m going to try and think of some RAOKs myself over the next few days.

Day 13 – a cuddle

It’s no secret that Liftshare has a dog-friendly office, and the pooches often brighten up my day by coming by my desk to say hi! We have Finley downstairs, who belongs to Teresa (our Finance Manager) and Ross (our CTO), and Fudge upstairs, who’s mum Hannah is our Events Co-ordinator.

Research has even shown health and emotional benefits to people who spend time around dogs, so I thought it only right that I have my cuddle with one of the Liftshare pets. After all, what better excuse for some time out on a Friday?! This is me cuddling Finley. I may or may not have had to bribe him with a treat to get him to take a good pic though…

Day 14 – some sweat

Whilst I quite enjoy the gym, I tend to stick to classes in order to find decent motivation to actually be there and work out. I hate running – staying on a treadmill bores me silly and I just end up lusting over whichever food programme the gym’s TVs are showing that evening!

I went for a 5k run with Matt and our friend Alec one evening. It was the first time I’ve ever run so far, and the first time I’ve done it outside… and I actually really enjoyed myself! Being outside and seeing different things along the way made the time go loads quicker. I even completed it within half an hour, and quite enjoyed myself, so have surprised myself all round! I might even go for a run this week now… 😉

If you’re up for sharing some sweat and getting active in your local community, check out Goodgym and help others while getting in some exercise!

Are you getting involved with any of the days of my challenge? If you’ve shared anything, donated anything, or used a sharing economy website this month, drop me a line at @lextalks!

Author Lex Barber

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