Let's not kid ourselves, most of us are involved, follow, post, watch, participate in social media in some way and despite the increasing concern on the negative impact social media can have, there are also quite a few positives we do need to take into account.
Initially, many of us jumped on the social media bandwagon for the social connection side of things and staying in touch with friends, family and yes maybe even following that occasional celebrity or brand that we're interested in.
Another benefit of social media is being a part of causes and campaigns that you're passionate about and sharing the message and work of charities and organisations that you support. This can be something as simple as liking a post, sharing it, commenting on it or even taking it one step further and raising some money.
Facebook has made this the fundraising side of things rrreeeeaaaaalllllllyyyyyy easy and we have been fortunate enough to receive so much support through the generous donations of people encouraging friends to donate to a charity for their birthday in lieu of gifts or setting up their own 'donate now' to LIVIN.
Every dollar we receives makes a difference and even more so, the awareness we receive through people sharing our message with their own network to create more conversations.
If you were wanting to jump on board and share some LIVIN love over the Christmas holidays through your Facebook page it's as easy as this:
1. Open/Log in to Facebook (obviously!)
2. Click on the three lines to open up the menu options
3. Scroll down (past the Groups, Events, Friends, etc tab) until you see the happy little love heart icon that says 'Fundraisers' and select it.
4. Choose the 'Charity' option and type in the search bar 'Top LIVIN' which will display the 'Top LIVIN Limited' option that you tap on . . .
5. Vula! Your Christmas fundraiser for LIVIN is done when you hit 'Done!' Feel free to update the photo, put your own spin on the description and change your goal amount.
If you are wanting to set up a Facebook fundraiser through your PC follow all these steps but just select 'Home' instead of the three bars to have the menu options displayed down the side of your screen.
The other option is to simply open Facebook and 'Create a Post'.
Under your options where you can 'Check In' add a 'Photo' etc, there is an option to 'Support Charity' that you click on, select Top LIVIN, add a few inspirational words or a pic to the post and Vula! You have just shared your support of LIVIN and the important work we do with mental health awareness and education.
All the money raised through Facebook fundraising will go directly to our LIVINWell Schools Program which, through the generous donations we receive, enables us to send one of our experience LIVIN facilitators out to any high school that reaches out to us and deliver our LIVINWell mental health educational and stigma reduction program at no cost to the school or the students - and every single dollar counts and is appreciated.
One of the gifts that social media is able to give to charities, spans further than the monetary donations opportunities. It's the awareness that a charity organisation receives through simply being a part of your social network that is so valuable through the invitation to reach others that we may not have otherwise been able to connect with and most importantly, reach someone that may need to hear the message, It Ain't To Speak.
We appreciate every gesture of support we receive through all of your support through our social media platforms and value the opportunity to work together to reach as many people as possible to break the stigma surrounding mental health.
Thank You.
#ItAintWeakToSpeak
