Claire Russell is Operations Director of Ethos Broking Partner, Perry Appleton. She also owns a mental health training business, is a volunteer with Samaritans, and a prolific public speaker.
Volunteering – and its surprising benefits
I’ve been an insurance broker all my adult life – it’s definitely part of who I am. I am also a listening volunteer with the Samaritans – and I can no more imagine not doing that, than I can imagine not being an insurance broker. I talk about my volunteer role a lot, not because I want a pat on the back but because I hope that by talking about my experiences, I might encourage others to consider doing some volunteer work themselves. I always wanted to be a Samaritan, ever since being a little girl. Not that I knew really what it involved, but I knew people that were Samaritans and I always had a desire to help
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people. I eventually decided to enroll and do the training, after having experienced a mental/ emotional breakdown myself. I considered myself lucky, as I had lots of loving, caring friends and family who supported me while I was ill – and helped me to find the tools I needed to recover. I was very aware that not everyone was as fortunate and I wanted to help those that were not. Training to be a Samaritan was tough! I had to let go of a whole load of judgment that I didn’t know I had, I had to learn how to really listen and I had to stop trying to fix people and accept that everyone has the right to self determination. As a Samaritan, you have to
