Helpfulpeeps is a newly developed social networking site and app. Starting in Bristol but rapidly spreading, making appearances in 50+ countries thus far. It is a site that facilitates helping.
You sign up for free and type in a message asking for help, whether music lessons or a lift to the doctors. If you don’t need any help then you can browse through the feed to see if there is anyone out there that could benefit from your help. At no point is money involved. The core values are that of community, sharing, human connections, and karma. Real old school.
Helpfulpeeps believe we all have skills and value – whether that be humour, kindness, or being great at playing the trombone. When shared, it will add value to the community.
They believe that taking money out of the equation enables more meaningful connections to grow, ones that aren’t based on making a profit out of each other.
And they believe that this site will help us give without expectation, knowing that when the time comes where we might be in need, the Helpfulpeeps community will help us.
Of course for such an app to make the impact it truly deserves, it needs a large audience. The more people that sign up, the better the output. There is only so much help that can be given in a community of 50, but imagine if it reaches even 10% of the University population, that’s over 1000 people, a great deal more could be achieved.
Speaking to co-founder Saf last month, I learnt that there are around 18 million people in the UK who want to volunteer but can’t find a cause that suits them or don’t have enough time.
But that is exactly what this site hopes to get past. You log onto the site when you have spare time and see if there’s anything out there that you can help with. If yes, great. If not, then you can just look next time you’re blessed with spare time.
All this has the potential for a huge ripple effect, hopefully without the sad death Pay it Forward has (great film), resulting in good deeds and karma-based actions spreading worldwide.
It is a truly great idea, still within its first year of life, but with huge promise. If you’re interested, Saf and Simon are looking for like-minded Helpfulpeeps to become ambassadors for their area. Check out the site here: http://www.helpfulpeeps.com/
I for one will be posting on there for help next time Dave’s sleeping bag and meagre supplies get stolen from outside WHSmiths.
