If you wait long enough, you’ll find reasons not to [do something]. And whether it’s someone else convincing you not to, whether you find the reason not to. But certainly, for me, the best way to get clarity is to take action. The more you do, the clearer you become.
Peter Baines joined the NSW Police Force at 19 and worked first as a uniformed officer before he joined the Forensic Services Group and became a real-life crime scene investigator (long before it was cool).
Little did he know that decision would change the trajectory of his life.
He is now an author, speaker, consultant and the co-founder of an amazing charity called ‘Hands Across The Water’.
Peter’s work as a forensic investigator took him first to Bali to identify victims following the 2002 Bali bombing that killed 202 people, including 88 Australia.
Then 2 years in 2004 he made his first trip to Thailand to assist with the identification of victims following the Boxing Day tsunami that killed between 250,000 and 300,000 people.
In a strange yet beautiful twist of fate, during his third rotation in Thailand, he agreed to raise money to fund a home for a group of children he had met who had been orphaned by the tsunami.
And so ‘Hands Across The Water’ was born; a charity that now owns and operates 7 homes across Thailand and cares for hundreds of at-risk children.
‘Hands’ also has a unique position with the charity sector; due to its structure, 100% of all donations go directly to the kids and communities they support and not one cent of donations are spent on administration or fundraising.
One way that ‘Hands’ raises money is by hosting charity rides (or ride experiences) throughout Thailand which always include a visit to a home operated by ‘Hands’.
I didn’t ask Peter how many rides he has now done. Yet I have a vague recollection of reading somewhere that the number is in excess of 30.
At 800km per ride, that’s over 24,000km that Peter has ridden over the years in Thailand over the years!
Peter joins me on Sparta Chicks Radio this week to discuss:
* his early career as a uniformed Police Officer, the decision to switch to the Crime Scene Unit and become a real-life CSI and how that decision has changed the trajectory of his life,
* why action leads to clarity and that if you wait long enough you’ll find reasons not to do the thing,
* his experience of working in Bali following the terrorist attack in 2002 that killed 202 people (including 88 Australians),
* the ‘post-event’ blues and the struggle with adjusting to ‘normal’ life after an experience that shifts your view of yourself and/or the world,
* heading to Thailand following the Boxing Day Tsunami in 2004,
* how he came to be involved in raising money for children orphaned in the tsunami and the origins of the charity ‘Hands Across The Water’,
* the importance of understanding your measures of ‘success’ and making sure they align with your ‘why’,
* where the idea for the charity rides originated from, and
* the impact that bushfires and COVID-19 have had on their fundraising efforts in 2020.
Click here to listen on iTunes.
Notes and resources:
You can find out more about 'Hands Across The Water' on Instagram, Facebook or via the website.
You can find more details about the 'Future of Membership' membership program here or buy your ticket for the Leadership Bytes event in September 2020 here.
