Why I follow Eleanor Roosevelt’s Advice: “Do One Thing Every Day That Scares You.”

By Lauren Petersen, United Way board member
 
I pride myself on being a thrill seeker. Go 180 miles an hour in an IndyCar? Count me in! Jump out of an airplane? Let’s do it! Scuba Dive in the Great Barrier Reef? I wouldn’t miss it. Rappel from a 23-story downtown Indy skyscraper? SAY WHAT?!
 
When I first learned of the 2020 Over the Edge challenge, I was attending a United Way of Central Indiana Board meeting and when the Executive Director, Ann Murtlow, shared the new fundraising endeavor and encouraged the board members to participate. Instantly, my stomach literally dropped at the vision of scaling down one of Indy’s tallest buildings.
 
Gut check complete.
 
I also pride myself on caring deeply about the Central Indiana community and after sleeping on this part crazy/part convincing charge to rappel for a reason, I couldn’t pass up this edgy opportunity to unite my peers and personal network to help me raise funds for United Way’s Basic Needs Fund while simultaneously doing something once in a lifetime!
 

SO WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO GO FROM A HARD “NO, THANKS!” TO A “YES, COUNT ME IN TO GO OVER THE EDGE?” HERE ARE THREE TIPS TO CONSIDER:

 
1.) Don’t do it alone: Find and ask friends, family members and colleagues to raise their hand to rappel for this special fundraising cause with you! I shared the opportunity with my TechPoint team and told my colleagues I would rappel only if they would rappel. Within a day, Jennifer Merrell and Roger Shuman jumped at the opportunity and we even made it a fun weekly competition to check in our fundraising efforts! We also used it as a team-building exercise and since we rappeled in 2020, it was the first time we had been together in person in months so we were filled with the best, positive energy all day (both from adrenaline and happiness of being together again!)
 
2.) Get creative with your fundraise: Each rappeler has the opportunity to to raise at least $1,000 for United Way of Central Indiana’s Basic Needs Fund and serve as an ambassador for the organization. I would recommend that rappelers get creative and personal with not only promoting their fundraising pages across their networks and social channels but also bring their donors along the journey and find unique ways to thank them! One friend used her design skills to create custom virtual thank you cards extending her gratitude to her donors. I texted my friends and family my individual donation page link and while I encouraged them to give at the level they felt most comfortable, I sweetened the opportunity by sharing that if they were to donate $100 or more I would put my hobby to use and paint them a custom watercolor painting.
 
3.) Ground yourself in the cause: While the lingering thought of rappelling over the edge of a skyscraper scared the living daylights out of me, that fear was consistently squashed by the resounding purpose of the commitment – and that was investing in a cause that provides the essential resources (like food, shelter, and transportation) and life-saving assistance (like healthcare) to our neighbors that need it most.
 
I hope you are encouraged to raise your hand for this wacky, yet worthy cause, and when your feet hit the ground, may you know that you accomplished an amazing feat and made a difference in our community while doing so!
 
Over The Edge takes place on August 13, 2021. Learn more and register to rappel by going to our Over the Edge page.