Time Banking: An Idea Whose Time Has Come?

Today's Valuable Free Resources/Links:

·        FREE resource to join The ITAV Time Bank, click here: https://itavministry.timebanks.org/

Summary

In this episode, I introduce you to Krista Wyatt.

Are you looking for a way to invest in your community that does not require a financial contribution?

Over the last 29 years working in non-profit organizations, Krista has developed and implemented organizational strategic planning, outreach, and program development. She is the CEO of TimeBanks.Org an international organization that works with TimeBanks to build better solutions to TimeBanking communities. The movement has become greater than it has ever been. With TimeBanks.Org’s unprecedented movement and growth, our focus is to provide education programs, inspiration, and actionable insights to build stronger and more resilient communities for members and coordinators in the TimeBanking community.

She has built a statewide network of partners through community engagements and has advocated for racial and health equality through policy and education. Krista spearheaded several initiatives that helped create a more agile organization accelerating non-profit’s ability to respond to their mission in the digital age while ensuring deeper engagement with communities.

Join me for this episode of Mommy Heal Thyself to learn how you can benefit from investing in your community without money.

• Time banking, a community-based movement.

• Time banking as a way to share time and build relationships. 3:40

• Time banking and its benefits for individuals and communities. 7:47

• Time banking as a community-based exchange of services. 13:15

• Time banking and cultural exchange.

Transcript
(Note, this was transcribed using a transcription software and may not reflect the exact words used in the podcast)

Intro  0:00 

Welcome to Mommy Heal Thyself.  We featured guests that provide you with the tools, resources and strategies you need to say no to a life of pain and suffering all forms of preventable disease, toxic drugs and unnecessary surgeries. We hope to inspire you to boldly reclaim your ability to heal, and to serve ones to love.

Dr Michelle  0:00 

A Krista Wyatt and she has been working in the world of nonprofit organizations for over 29 years, Krista has developed and implemented organizational strategic planning, outreach and program development. She is now the CEO of time banks.org, an international organization that works with time banks to create better solutions to 10 banking communities. Now, this movement has become greater than it has ever been with timebank.org unprecedent movement and growth. Their focus is to provide education programs, inspiration and actionable insights to help build stronger, more resilient communities for the members and coordinators within the timebanking community. She has built a statewide network of partners throughout community engagement and has advocated for racial and health equality through policy and education. Krista has spearheaded several initiatives that created a more agile organization, accelerating the nonprofits ability to respond to their mission and the digital age while ensuring deeper engagement with communities. Welcome, welcome, my lovely Christa. How are you today?

Krista W  1:20 

Wonderful. Thanks so much for inviting me. I appreciate it. I'm excited to share about what's going on in the Time Bank world.

Dr Michelle  1:28 

Well, I am so honored and blessed to have you here with us because as you know, it takes a village ministry. One of our key themes is that we build immunity through community. And when I learned about you guys in the time banking world, I said, Oh my god, this is so awesome. It takes that whole concept of investing in our community to a whole new level. So now, before we begin, let's go back to the beginning. And can you share with us what is timebanking? What's it all about?

Krista W  2:04 

Well, I will start by just by sharing that time banks in itself started with Edgar Kahn. He is the modern father of time banking, and he is the one made it happened here in the US as well as in the worlds he started time baking after getting a heart attack having a heart attack about 30 years ago, and what he wanted to make sure is that everyone felt valued, when no matter what state you were in, and that's where time banking was launched was that feeling of making sure everyone was included in your community. It's that sense of connection and relying on each other. So to answer your question, we've been out there for close to 30 years. And it is ever growing and ever evolving in the Timebank worlds and you know what our mission is to not just build the movement, but just to meet where the community is and what their needs are. And so for us to spend the last, you know, three to five years of really investing in learning about you know what is going on in your community, and how can we make it better? How can we build that trust and really finding those type of programs that are out that are really effective and to build those communities skills and so we're excited we're just moving along so much to do so much to do.

Unknown Speaker  3:37 

So tell us again, what is time banking?

Krista W  3:40 

Oh, that's right. So yes, all right. So what's time banking? Great question. time banking is when you give an hour, you receive an hour. It's as simple as that. We have whatever it had comes in different names, from time credits to community credits, it really is is just investing an hour of your time. No matter what you have to offer. It is an hour of your time and that's what's so priceless is that we have so much to give and in time is it definitely what we can give but when you earn a credit, you're able to use that credit for someone else's time. And what that means is that you know you have read a book to somebody you earned that one hour credit you received a credit in your bank. And with that credit you're able to use for other things that you may need someone to pick up your medication to someone cut your grass to plant you know, we see time making happen in so many different ways and in terms of exchanging their time is you know, you you you learn skills, you learn how to play the you know, musical instrument, you rely on each other for babysitting, all kinds of things in the time making role that you could give back to also receive and so that is the basic concept of time. Banking, that it's out there.

Dr Michelle  5:06 

You know, one of the things I really love the most about time banking is this whole concept of sharing your time. You know, a lot of times we get so overwhelmed with all the 50 million things that are happening in the world, and many people are in a position where they may not be able to give their money. But we are all able to give our time if we choose and to have that understanding that your time is as valuable, if not more valuable than material goods. You know, I just saw on the timebanking where a person asked for someone to just share time for conversation. And oh my god, it just hit my heart. You know, because what many people don't realize is isolation and loneliness is a significant killer in our community. And so something as simple as just saying, You know what? I'm going to share my time I'm going to share a conversation with someone Ah, right.

Krista W  6:13 

Yeah, I when I learned about Edgar was one of the videos I can't remember where he had it but um, a woman stood up and she said you know, I have nothing to give and Eicher goes but you have love to give. And that's what was that's what did it for me in time banking. There's, it's not about it. It's not transactional. It's building a relationship. It's learning to feel valued as a human being. That's what time banking is. And I think there's you know, two different sides of time banking one and both work but one is it can be transactional. And what I love about time making work comes from my heart is that relationship where you just met somebody and I'm going to learn to trust you to come in my home. I'm going to learn from you of what your experience was, what you have faced, during whether it was feeling neglected or hurt, you know, for me to hear those stories and then give back it is just a healing each other of just saying you know what, I'm listening. That's all we can do is to say, I'm gonna be here to still listen. And I think that's very healing for our community is, you know, our community goes through, people go through so much, and just to share it without any bias or prejudice, I think is important. So sharing each other's stories is a big, big deal. About timebanking. And I think that that is what really needs to be done more and more. It's some you know, time baking, we talk about our core values and respect is one of them. I just had a conversation with that. You know, as a society we're growing into pockets of reacting in a way where if we just put our armor down and just listened and shared, you know, what's going on, but also just respecting your views as well. I think that is important. So,

Dr Michelle  8:20 

yeah, now do you have a personal story? In terms of why you became involved in timebanking?

Krista W  8:26 

Yeah, absolutely. I learned about timebanking actually was a health center that I worked for, and what we did is we created a mentor program. And it was for cancer survivors. And I think that that really started it we had, you know, a mentorship that was in a jar and there were inspiration quotes of people who are just recently diagnosed. And inspiration. Quotes are great, you know, we read them, they're like, yeah, we'll put that on our refrigerator. But to me, I needed to make sure that if you have just been recently diagnosed, you need to know immediately that you're not alone. And so that's when I learned about timebanking is if we implemented a program, where we had a newly diagnosed survivor linking them with someone who already went through, you know, hell and back, came back from such an atrocious time from you know, from surgeries to different stages of their their cancer journey, but then gone through it, that they're able to give back and that power of seeing someone who went through it and then said, You know what, because I'm giving it back of sharing that I'm gonna be there for that person is it was incredible. It was the you could feel the energy in the room of after they met, and the other person who felt you know that the world is going to end this is it that it brought them hope. So that's what started with with me and timebanking is that giving and receiving part because I think that as a society we have grown to receive and that it's really hard to give our, our receive both receive and give at the same time. And I think that, you know, there are so many different nonprofits out there that are pertaining to different community needs. But for me, Timebank goes into a community and it meets everybody's needs. Yeah, and that's the power of time making.

Dr Michelle  10:29 

I love what you're saying, especially the idea of allowing every single person regardless of your status, to have that sense of value of knowing that you have something to share and it even goes to our population of people that we refer to as maybe challenged in different ways. Whether you may have a child that is autistic, or someone who's dealing with a variety of different issues. You can always find a gift that that person has a talent that that person has, you know, I think about my daughter who's special needs, and her talent is just talking, oh, God, she could talk to a rock you hear me? And, you know, for her to be able to share that gift, which is to have conversation with perhaps an elder a senior citizen who's looking for a company who is looking for that sense of vitality, and you know, she could just sit there chatter, chatter, chatter, chatter, chatter and feel that at the end of that time, she has given a gift to someone else that her time her person is valuable. Ah,

Krista W  11:45 

awesome. It is awesome. I hear that more now. of you know, during after well, actually, after COVID There were two different types of people that I saw was one who actually enjoyed that isolation. And then, but still wanted to give but then there's the other type where they wanted to do it over and beyond get out there and get back into the community. And that was also people with special needs people with disabilities and I met someone who has a time bank that deals with the older disability community. And just to really recognize that in her community, all of the people that joined that topic have something to give you know, making pizza, listening to their stories to playing even a video game and playing a card game it to me that that sense of shared space that I'm important to it just gives them a sense of empowerment that they are part of this not just the receiver part they're just part of this connection in our community and it feels it's a reward to feel valued. And I love that I love that so

Dr Michelle  13:03 

so now what is one mistake or misunderstanding that you have found that people may have with regards to time banking?

Krista W  13:15 

I wouldn't say it's a mistake. What I do see is that there are two coins to this. I think that there one sees it more transactional where they have to earn these credits and because we have been in such a, you know, we've been in part of capitalism for hundreds of years now that we're so programmed to look at this as more transactional. I think that um, like I've mentioned is to see time banking is more of an experience. is m is our is our is my direction, my personal direction, because to me, if we keep living in a world that is just pure transactional, I don't see that much value because, you know, there's different types of currency and it's weighed by you know, a currency Wait, but there's no there's no leveling when it comes to the currency of your time. It's your time is valuable. So I don't see it as a problem. I think it's just something that people choose to do it that way and that's fine. It's just if we can create more of a place where we are loved with one another and just realize it's not something that we are a paper. We are not a certificate. We're not a but we are more than that. And I think that is the challenge is that we have to it's just a whole new way of thinking. It's a whole new way of thinking for the last 30 years. I think if you're gonna say if it's a problem, I think marketing and sharing what time banking time banking should be in every community. That is our challenge is that it's this aha moment like you, you know, why are we in a society that we have to overcomplicate it, you know, let's just,

Unknown Speaker  15:05 

it should be default mode.

Krista W  15:07 

It should be default. It's like we're going back in time that 1000s of years of gathering each other and we're gathering and the things that we needed. As a community and sharing. It's like we're hitting the reset button.

Dr Michelle  15:21 

Yeah, I understand exactly what you mean. Because I say the same thing with our organization. It takes a village. It's like, why is this so hard? This is this is the way we used to do things and it's like now it's like, you're looked at as a crazy person if you're, if you're proposing these things, and you're like, wait a minute, human beings operated in this manner for 1000s of years. It's only recently that we entered this space where we are isolated beings, but we figure that we have to do it all by ourselves and we feel a sense of guilt or shame if we asked for help. So I understand completely and, you know, I think the one challenge I can foresee with timebanking because of the people that I know that I usually attract that are over givers. In a way that to also allow yourself to receive because in receiving you're allowing someone else to have the gift of giving, you know so I think that that would be my one caution there are there there are many people that feel like they have to give they can give and give and give and give and they don't take time to just breathe and let someone you know love on them.

Krista W  16:38 

Exactly. I think that there are what we see now after COVID is a lot of time banks have hit the reset button. And in the past they were focused on I would say focus more on the transactional and digital world. And us revisiting our community and knocking on doors is something that we haven't done in a while. Yeah, knowing our neighbors name, postal carriers name, it's that sense of that's what community is is knowing each other. And I think that is a challenge is that it's it's really understanding Are you meeting the needs of your community, whether in different organizations is that really wanting to see what can I do for you, but you know what, I also have some needs to Yeah, I think that is another way of restarting a time bank is reminding each other, you know, Name five things that you have in your house right now that you need done. And they've just been sitting there. Right? How many times have we you know, you sit around and you're like I have to do this this weekend. There goes my you know, walk at the park because now I have to stay home and you know, clean the garage. You know, it's just that aha moment of Wait a minute, I have a time bank. I haven't given so many hours. It's time to say I would really love for you to come over and help me clean my garage, you know, that and you know, here's the thing, it's not just it can be so much more than that. It's that person coming into your house or your garage, and you get to you know, work with them and you start talking you talk about your past life experiences. Whether you've had cultural and differences with other people or if you've just had you know, you've been isolated thing any any story that you just feel like you want to share. You have another person listening so it's like it's you've just earned another hour, because you were listening to somebody else. But I thought that that's fine love and God is just that sense of, you've just met a new friend. You know, it's not just someone who is like, that's what I'm trying to say is stay not transactional. It's that experience. You know, I love that.

Dr Michelle  18:54 

I love that you're emphasizing that it's not. And that's and I think that for me, it's one of the distinguishing differences between time banking and bartering. You know, bartering is very transactional. You know, I do this you do that, when time banking, as you said is more of an experience. And and what I share to people is that it's a matter of investing in the community because when you invest your time into the community, you may not receive from that person that you gave to you are going to more likely receive from other parts of your community, if not from the International part of the communities and that's what I really enjoy about timebanking.org. So ladies, I encourage you to look into the show notes and click on the link for it takes a village time bank and join our time bank so that you can not only be able to share and receive with your community that you're that's your local community. But also the beautiful thing about this time bank is that it allows you to also share and receive from an international community. So I thank you, Krista for joining us today and giving us a little bit more of a peek into the world of time banking. Is there any last thing that you would like to say to our audience before we close out

Krista W  20:22 

Well, I I love the fact that you started your time bank with it takes a village I think that is going to be phenomenal, especially you reaching out to the international community. What I would also love is that your your members, your community gets to share each other's gifts. Not only on you know in your area, but around the world and to me, you know, when we look at cultural diversity and understanding and respecting one another, you are just without probably you already know it is that you're educating and your other members will be educated as well to learn about other people's cultures and I think that is so important. From sharing recipes to your time or you know, learning a new language. There's so much potential of learning from each other and just opening that door to add more of a global world you know, that more that utopia that we've been dreaming about. So I love that.

Dr Michelle  21:25 

Awesome. So ladies, once again, be sure to go into the show notes and join our time bank and experience the world of giving and sharing and reciprocity. We look forward to being with you again for our next episode. And until then, peace and blessings.

Closing: Thank you for tuning in for this episode of Mommy Heal Thyself, if you liked what we're doing here, please share subscribe, like us and leave a comment. Your feedback is very much appreciated.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai