The Art of Doing Good: Where Passion Meets Action - a book review

For anyone wishing to do good - and who doesn't - this is a wonderful book! 

Let me clarify, this book is not a standard 'self-help' book. It is a practical manual for those who wish to start (or are already involved with) a non-profit organization. The book provides useful tips peppered with personal anecdotes from practitioners which promise to make the life of any social entrepreneur easier and, hopefully, more successful. 

Social entrepreneurship or starting / managing a voluntary welfare organization is complicated. There are no hard and fast rules. Much has to be learnt 'on the fly.' Nonetheless, the author's have done well to provide readers with some basic principles in starting, managing and growing such organizations. 

The Art of Doing Good is a specialized work, not for everyone. For those who wish to get into the field of social entrepreneurship this book is an excellent place to start the journey. 

______________

Imran is a former banker and has lived and worked in several countries during his international banking career. He enjoys traveling, especially by train, as a way to feed his curiosity about the world and nurture his interest in photography. He is a licensed freelance tour guide in Singapore. He is available on twitter (@grandmoofti); Instagram (@imranahmedsg) and can be contacted at imran.ahmed.sg@gmail.com

What am I doing in Tando Allahyar? That's in rural Sindh (Pakistan) in case you didn't know!

Almost one million people live in Tando Allahyar district located in Pakistan's Sindh province. One million is not a small number but the population is spread over many villages and towns across an expanse of almost 1,500 square kilometers. Yes, the district is about twice the size of Singapore and has less than twenty percent of the island republic's population.

Take Rashidabad, my 'hometown' since September. Rashidabad is less than 35 hectares in size – one third the size of Singapore's Gardens by the Bay. By my guesstimation Rashidabad has a resident population of maybe 2,000. However, the town's daytime population probably swells to at least twice its resident population due to visiting students, patients, employees, etc.

For most Singaporeans, the entire country of Pakistan is considered off limits, so what is a Singaporean-Karachite doing in 'ulu' Rashidabad?

Well, yes, I am a Pakistani by birth so no part of Pakistan is alien to me … technically. The reality is more complicated.

Pakistan is an interlinked mosaic of different cultures and linguistic regions. As a Karachite, my DNA is quite different even from urbanite compatriots from Lahore, Peshawar, Hyderabad or Islamabad. Often we speak a different language. Culture, including dress, gender roles, food and religious traditions vary widely.

A Karachite from the twenty million strong City of Lights doesn't see the world like a Sindhi speaking farmer from Quba village, Tando Allahyar district. The Quba resident grew up hearing tales of Watayo Faqir and his beautiful poetry. She is entirely indifferent to Shakespeare's (Sheikh who?) plays and sonnets taught to many Karachites in school.

Karachi, after all, is Pakistan's answer to New York city (no kidding). On the contrary, Tando Allahyar is primarily an agricultural area producing some of the country's finest mangoes. Though it is adjacent to one of Pakistan's oldest and finest agricutural universities.

But I digress. What am I doing in Rashidabad?

I am here to experience Pakistan beyond cities and locales familiar to me. I am here to live life to the fullest; an acknowledgement that leading a full life often requires escaping the hustle and bustle of cities like our own Singapore. It means no riding subway trains, no CNBC financial news or shopping malls. Instead one must stop and smell the roses and enjoy the world's simpler pleasures.

But mostly, I am in Rashidabad to interact with kids and teach them English in the process. I do that at the Sargodhian Spirit Trust Public School (SST), Rashidabad; a boys boarding school established in 2005.

Selfie time with SST students!

As for my time with SST students? I will spare you tales about teaching the next generation of leaders, etc. Instead, let's just say I will try to stop myself from tearing up when I leave Rashidabad next month! It's hard not to get attached to boys with boundless enthusiasm and energy – no matter how disruptive they may be inside the classroom!

In summary, Rashidabad is much more than a dot on the map. Rashidabad is about teaching and learning. Learning is the reason I am in Tando Allahyar. Who knew teaching is simply another word for learning?

Imran is an adventurer, blogger, consultant, guide, photographer, speaker, traveler and a banker in his previous life. At the time of writing, Imran is living in Rashidabad until December 2017 while a volunteer at the SST Public School. He is available on twitter (@grandmoofti); Instagram (@imranahmedsg) and can be contacted at imran.ahmed.sg@gmail.com.