We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Shannon Ashe a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Shannon , so great to have you with us and thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts with the community. So, let’s jump into something that stops so many people from going after their dreams – haters, nay-sayers, etc. We’d love to hear about how you dealt with that and persisted on your path.
A few weeks ago, I received a call from an unknown number. Since starting The Everywhere Project, I’ve tried to be better about accepting calls from numbers I don’t know, in the past I would have just let it go to voicemail. Anyway, I answer the call and am immediately berated, “Are you the one giving out needles that people are stepping on?”, the caller demanded to know, “Do you really think this helps the problem? You’re only making things worse!”. There were two people on the call, a man and a woman and they were both yelling at me. I had accepted the call less than 30 seconds earlier. When it became clear that they had called only to verbally harass me and were not open to education or discussion, I ended the call.
I was taken aback by this random phone call, from a state several hundred miles away, someone had decided to take time out of their day to call me and criticize our attempt to save lives during a national public health crisis.
The reality is that some people are not interested in understanding where others are coming from. I find this to be sad as they are limiting their own potential for growth. They are choosing to spread negativity instead of trying to be part of the solution. I don’t take it personally, instead I recenter myself by thinking about the importance of what we do and all the ways we have supported individuals and the community as a whole since founding The Everywhere Project. I fall back on my own ethics and morals and ensure that I am maintaining a commitment to myself and to the values of the project as a whole.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
I am one of the co-founders of The Everywhere Project, a Philadelphia nonprofit organization providing harm reduction supports and hunger relief for vulnerable neighbors across the city. We serve nearly 1,000 individuals per week through two outreach sites and mobile distribution 6 days per week. TEP is a fully volunteer run organization and one of the largest providers of safer use supplies in Philadelphia. TEP was founded by myself and my best friend three years ago as a response to increased overdoses across Philadelphia and the entire United States. Since then, TEP has grown more than we could have ever imagined and we are so proud of the community that has formed around the organization. In 2022, we distributed over 100,000 meals to community members in need.
In addition to our community outreach efforts, TEP also provides access to harm reduction education and support at concerts, raves and other events throughout the city. This enables us to increase access to harm reduction supports outside of individuals served at a street level.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
The number one quality that has played a role in the success of our project is passion. Having a true passion for what you are doing is something that can not be taught and has truly been the biggest force in the success of The Everywhere Project. In the past three years, our team has put thousands of hours into the project and this has been 100% volunteer, no one has been compensated financially for their time and effort. The second quality is humility. We are always learning from those we serve, we don’t know best what they need, they do. We ask questions, seek feedback and listen to those in our community. Then we make adjustments to ensure that we are providing what is truly needed. The third thing that comes to mind is teamwork. We truly embrace the concept of there being, “No, I in team”. We succeed together, we make mistakes together and we learn together. We don’t place blame when things go wrong, we work together to try our best to mitigate damage and figure out how to do better in the future.
Any advice for folks feeling overwhelmed?
Feeling overwhelmed has always been a challenge for me. As someone with ADHD, I tend to take on a lot and then feel like I am drowning in all of the things. My willingness to take initiative is a good thing but it has led to lots of anxiety. The best advice I can give is that it’s much easier to move pebbles than a bolder. Break down what is overwhelming you into smaller and more manageable pieces. Make a list and move through it. Perhaps most critically, remind yourself that your worth is not dependent on your productivity. If you make a mistake or miss a deadline, you are not a failure, you are a human.
Contact Info:
- Website: everywhereproject.org
- Instagram: the_everywhere_project
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheEverywhereProject
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/theeverywhereproject
