Welcome to The GOOD 30-Day Challenge (#30DaysofGOOD). Each month, we challenge our community members to do something that will improve the world around us—and our own lives. The challenge for September? To connect with other people. In an effort to help us all rise to the occasion, we’re going to assign one small task every day. Each morning, we will post the challenge on GOOD.is and Twitter, along with a testimonial from someone on the GOOD team who’s already completed it. We invite you to complete all 30 mini-challenges with us! For the last mini-challenge of September, we challenge you to:
Have a conversation with someone either 20 years older or younger than you are.
At the peak of my competitive fencing career, I spent as many as four days a week training with my coach, a 60-something Renaissance man who taught me more about every subject than any other teacher I’ve ever had.
Since I was 14, making Harold proud has been a huge motivator in my life, whether academically, professionally, or athletically—my 2002 “outstanding fencer” award still sits on my dresser, and the thrill on his face when I showed him my college team’s league championship ring or my articles from The Washington Post is etched in my mind. But since I moved away, it’s been difficult to keep in touch with my mentor. Harold doesn’t use the internet, and though I always resolve to write regular letters, it rarely seems to happen.
So when I got a message from a stranger’s Facebook account asking me to call Harold’s cell phone, I worried that something was wrong. But in fact, he just wanted to catch up—he had asked a student to look me up through the site and send me a note. I told him about my job at GOOD and heard a bit about the goings-on back home. We made plans to meet for lunch next time I’m in town. I hung up the phone beaming.
Ready, set, go! Good luck completing today’s challenge. Share your experience on Twitter, Tumblr, and Facebook by using the hashtag #30DaysofGOOD, or let us know how it went in the comments section below.
You did it! Congratulations. We hope you feel more connected to the people around you. Onto the next one! October’s challenge is to get healthy.
Tomorrow’s challenge: Substitute tea for coffee.
