San Francisco, CA – In a shocking turn of events, we’ve learned of a healthy, 50-year-old woman whose over-volunteering has resulted in her going bald. The woman in question asked to remain anonymous and hasn’t appeared in public since the last strand of hair left her head.
We’re at the local school, speaking with Nancy who is close to this do-gooder. “She is a picture of health, walking into a room, and greeting everyone with a kind hello.” But behind closed doors, Nancy reports this woman isn’t smiling. Instead, she’s announcing, “It’s just too much, and it’s my own fault.”
Nancy tells us her friend lost her hair in stages
“At PTO meetings, I started noticing her hair looking like a patchwork quilt. She is the secretary and often has her head down taking notes. It was hard to miss it when often the top of her head is all we see.”
While no one has seen her actively pulling her hair out, this enlistee’s gestures during volunteer events show her hands in her hair and the occasional grimace on her face.
“We are also at the same charity events volunteering with each of our sons, so many times I’ll run into her multiple times in one week. We’re a small community, and an even smaller group of women seem to volunteer despite holding down jobs outside of the home.” Nancy lifts her hands and shoulders in a shrug saying “She says yes, and she’s reliable. What can you do?”
Through our investigation, we found this yes-woman also contributes her time to two other places: the school education foundation and a local non-profit theater company. Soon after an arts grant application was due, and after spending the majority of a week writing what amounted to a term paper, the application was complete. On that same day, our volunteer began wearing a beanie.
Her husband reports they discussed the word “No” and rehearsed how to decline volunteer opportunities, even going so far as to stage a fake committee meeting in their living room, so she could practice saying out loud, “No, I am so sorry, I need to politely decline.” More training is planned in the near future.
We’re pleased to report this story ends happily.
One local business, hearing of this woman’s dedication to volunteer work, has paid it forward and donated its latest product – The Volunteer Shock Collar. This product may sound familiar as it launched to rave reviews at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas earlier this year. This stylish collar comes in three smashing designs, is adjustable to any neck size, and retails for $75. The Volunteer Shock Collar works by syncing to an app on your phone. A user can set a “yes” threshold and, when reached, the collar delivers a light shock. Research has shown when a person receives a shock, after the initial yelp of “ouch,” the word “no” soon follows.
Nancy tells us she hopes her friend can find her smile in volunteering once again.
One sliver of a request was attached to this “Volunteer Shock Collar” gift gesture. The company that donated it asked that the recipient fill out a survey after using the volunteer shock collar. The company wants to learn about the improvements they can make to the product in the near future. Participation in the study is entirely voluntary, of course. We’re waiting to find if our over-zealous volunteer decided to take the survey. ZZZzz.
Special thanks to Robin Higgins for the image.
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