How do you help someone who is in need?
I think this is not as easy as we sometimes assume.
There are several obstacles to effective and empowering help and aid.
1. The giver enjoys the process so much that that they will subconsciously keep the recipient in a needy state, rather than empowering them so they can become independent.
2. The recipient actually does not want the help they may actually need. For example, they enjoy the attention and lack of responsibility associated with being needy.
I think these issues can play out in a wide range of contexts: from trying to help an individual with an addiction problem to giving money to economically poor communities in the developing world.
None of these obstacles are an excuse from action and fumbling through finding solutions. Key ingredients are humility, listening, partnership, and patience.
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This is so true. I have noticed how Western countries like to help only countries that stay poor. They ignore countries that have once been poor but are now rich.
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