With a recession that has brought many families to their collective knees, it is more important than ever to help out those in need around you. If you have a neighbour that is struggling financially, they may sincerely need some help to get them over the hurdle and survive for another month. If you have the resources to help, then it should be seen as a civic duty to do so.
Insulting your neighbour should be the furthest thing from your mind, but it can and does happen. Perhaps helping them without their knowledge is the best way to go about helping. This can also help you to establish a little bit of compassion in your life, and give your children a solid example to follow.
You can help out in so many ways, but you need to make sure that they are areas where help may be accepted, and pride can take a back seat.
During times of financial instability, people experience a heightened perception of pride, and are quick to become insulted at the notion that they need help in any form. If a neighbor has fallen upon hard times, and they are unwilling to accept some charity, then you must find ways to help them while it remains unbeknownst to them. It does not take much to help out a neighbor in need, and it is our duty as a community to help others in need.
Being a good neighbor involves many different aspects. A neighbor can prove to be far more valuable than family and friends in a crisis, and therefore honing friendships with neighbors is vital. When an emergency hits, a neighbor can help provide immediate assistance, in any way, shape, or form.
These relationships need to be cultivated, and sometimes your neighbor may need help even though it goes unmentioned. Pay attention to any warning signs, and make a mental note when you notice something.
A neighbor who is struggling financially usually has far too much pride to announce the need for help. If monetary assistance is offered, it can prove to be very insulting. Many people are unwilling to walk through doors that others hold open for them, placing stubborn pride ahead of admitting defeat. There are times in all of our lives when things are not perfectly rosy, and it is at these times when we are in the direst of need. Reaching out a helping hand to a neighbour that is struggling financially is a very sympathetic notion.
An easy way to help out would be to casually mention that, while you are outdoors cooking, that your dinner guests just called to cancel, and invite your neighbors over for dinner. This does not seem like charity, and it can offer them a bit of stress relief. A simple meal, and perhaps then an evening of cheap fun can go a long way to helping someone enjoy an evening.
Be certain that it is a meal that you know they enjoy, and perhaps cannot afford during their current financial woes, such as steak or lobster. A couple of drinks can also help a neighbour to relax and unwind.
If you see the paper carrier approaching the house with their collection booklet, take care of the newspaper bill for your neighbor. This is a small expense, but it can add up in a hurry when money is tight. The wallet cannot close any tighter at times, and allowing it the opportunity to remain shut is very beneficial. Something like this may not even go noticed, other than for the fact that money will not be going out of the account.
If you find that your neighbor is perhaps laid off of work, recently fired, or just plain run into a streak of bad luck, helping them out is something that you must do, and you need to do it in a manner that is not insulting to them. Some good advice is to anonymously be generous, either with your time or your effort, or with financial backing. Do some leg work to help them gain some employment, even if it is just temporary.
If your neighbor is struggling financially, try to find a way to help him out without being obvious about your intentions. If the person is handy at all, offer some work on the side doing some renovations. Instead of paying for a reputable company to do some work in your house, offer your neighbor the job. Perhaps he would be willing to paint, landscape, or even babysit. Have some friends or family that might need some work done around the house? Mention it to your neighbor, and allow him or her the opportunity to take the job.
A neighbor who is struggling financially may need other forms of help, so offering to take their children to the movies with your own kids is a nice gesture, and that can save him or her from having to dispense any of their own income. Cut your neighbors grass for him, or order a pizza delivered to their house without leaving a name.
These little things can go a long way to easing the financial burden and emotional toll that it has taken. If questioned about the events, deny your involvement. Helping people out is our duty as global citizens, and we should never endeavor to do something merely to take credit for the act.
If you know that your neighbor is in dire need of certain items, have a pre-yard sale, inviting them over to ransack your wares, and at a fraction of the would be cost, they will just think that they are getting a great deal. Under the guise of getting rid of things, you could really be helping out a neighbor who is struggling financially.
Pride can be a tough pill to swallow, which is why there needs to be an air of tact around any help that you may give to your neighbor. Offer forth your services as a car pool if it works out at all, which would also be a nice gesture. If your neighbor is out, or later in the evening, fill their gas tank out of a jerry can that you have in the garage. A full tank of gas, or even a portion of a tank is hard to notice unless you are looking.
This small gesture can save a lot of money for them while times are financially difficult. Carefully losing a gift card in their yard may also help. Taking a handout is a lot easier for someone down on their luck when they do not have to acknowledge it face to face.
Depending on the circumstances involved in your neighbor’s plight, anything, no matter how big or small can be greatly appreciated. As long as you ensure to not insult your neighbor, any financial or emotional assistance is of the utmost importance, and will be greatly appreciated. The smile on your own face will be the just reward. Paying it forward makes the world go around, and one nice turn deserves another, so in due time, your previous generosity will be returned.
The key to helping out your struggling neighbor is to do so in a manner which is not insulting to them. You do not want to strain a relationship, because in times of monetary problems, stress levels are greatly heightened, and rationality may take a back seat. Give freely of yourself, and be sure to allow your neighbor the ability to hold their head high, even though they may have needed to swallow some pride.
As long as you remain cognizant of their feelings, and try not to be insulting or condescending in any way, shape, or form, then helping out a struggling neighbour is a wonderful thing to do, and the rewards can be reaped internally for the giving person as well. Giving someone hope in times of darkness goes a lot further than one could ever imagine.