Service Above Self

Imagine being surrounded by snow, lying on a cement slab with an empty stomach as dozens of passerby's strut their new suits and shiny watches without batting an eye at you.

"Martin Luther King, Jr. wrote that the true measure of a man is?how he treats someone who can do him absolutely no good. The measure of a man is what he does with power. If you want to see the true measure of a man, watch how he treats his inferiors, not his equals."

My mum was telling me recently that the homeless problem in Australia has reached all time highs with more than 120,000 homeless people on the streets each night.

I'm currently in Kenya and was curious to see what this problem looks like and compared it with the countries I've lived in, in the past.

You're about to be shocked.

• Even with a population twice the size of Australia, Kenya has 6x less homeless people.
• Canada has 30% less people than Kenya and has 11x more homeless people.
• The UK has about the same population as Kenya but with 11x more homeless people.
• The US has half a million homeless people sleeping on the streets with an empty stomach every night a.k.a. the entire population of Seychelles, Monaco, and Iceland combined.

Who's really a developing country if the country can't even look after the bottom of Maslow's hierarchy of needs?

Countries like Finland that have adopted the 0 Homeless Strategy and also winning 1st place as the Happiest Country on Earth can't be a coincidence.

Every country has its challenges.

But, I believe that if we all live by the motto of "service above self", most of these challenges would go away.

When I joined Rotary, one of the first things I got attached to is the ritual of repeating these words:

In everything we think, say, and do;

1. Is it the truth?
2. Is it fair to all concerned
3. Will it build goodwill and better friendships?
4. Will it be beneficial to all concerned?

It's hard to find a town without a Rotary club. We even have eClubs so anyone from anywhere can join at anytime.

If you feel like you could live a little more selflessly, spend 20-minutes with us and discover how you can make the world a better place.

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