What if volunteers aren’t walking away — they’re just choosing a path that feels right for them?

In Episode 3 of Making a Ruckus, Tracey O’Neill explores the metaphor of Elephant Paths — those natural shortcuts peoplecarve when the “official path” just doesn’t make sense for them. And what these paths tell us about volunteer behaviour today.

Instead of seeing low recruitment conversion or disengagement as a sign that people don’t want to volunteer, Tracey reframes it: people are volunteering — they’re just stepping around the hoops, delays, and rigid processes. They’re choosing paths that feel intuitive, meaningful, flexible — paths that fit with their real life.

You’ll hear:

• Why many people start the journey to volunteer…and then step away
• How delays, friction, rigid processes andmisaligned roles shape these “paths”
• Why informal volunteering isn’t competition —it’s communication
• How Elephant Paths mirror Aboriginal Songlinesand the ancient wisdom of following meaning, not control
• How you can “read the map” volunteers arealready drawing — and design systems people want to walk

This episode will change how you understand disengagement.
It’s not apathy. It’s adaptation.
A quiet—but powerful—signal about where meaning and momentum truly live.

Stay bold. Stay curious. Keep making a ruckus.

Mentioned:

• Tracey's LinkedIn article on Elephant Paths: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/when-volunteers-tread-own-path-tracey-o-neill-cva-ke01c/

Connect:

• Learn more: www.traceyoneillconsulting.com.au
• Join the conversation on LinkedIn: @traceyoneillcva
• Follow on Instagram: @tracey.oneill.cva
• Follow on Facebook: Tracey O'Neill Consulting

What if people still want to volunteer — they just don’t want to do it the way our systems expect them to? In this episode of Making a Ruckus, Tracey O’Neill challenges one of the biggest myths in volunteer engagement: the “recruitment problem.”

We keep hearing it: “No one wants to volunteer anymore.”
But what if that’s not true?

Tracey explores how outdated processes, rigid roles, and under-resourced leadership have created unnecessary barriers — and why the real challenge isn’t recruitment at all, it’s system design.

You’ll hear:

• What the data really says about the shift from formal to informal volunteering.

• Real quotes from sector leaders who are rethinking the future of engagement.

• How volunteer engagement needs a seat at the strategy table.

• Why systems built with community — not for them — are the key to belonging.

• Six practical ways to make volunteering easier, faster, and more human.

Because volunteering doesn’t need fixing — it needs reimagining.

Mentioned:

• Volunteering Victoria 2025 State of Volunteering Report - https://www.volunteeringvictoria.org.au/state-of-volunteering-vic/
• Real comments Tracey's LinkedIn post on the "recruitment myth" - https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7373580643009560576/

Connect:

• Learn more: traceyoneill.com.au
• Join the conversation on LinkedIn: @traceyoneillcva
• Follow on Instagram: @tracey.oneill.cva
• Follow on Facebook: Tracey O’Neill Consulting

In this episode, Tracey O’Neill launches Making a Ruckus on International Volunteer Managers Day (5 November) — a day that honours the leaders who don’t just manage volunteers but mobilise communities, challenge systems, and create change that truly matters.

The 2025 IVM Day theme, “Be Bold. Make Change.”, isn’t just a slogan — it’s a call to action. Tracey explores what boldness really means in volunteer engagement: not being the loudest voice in the room, but the one brave enough to ask why, to imagine something better, and to centre people and community in every decision.

She shares the story behind her own ruckus — from her first volunteering experiences as a ten-year-old serving lunch on Christmas Day to leading volunteer services in hospitals and national organisations. Tracey reflects on the turning points that shaped her belief that volunteering isn’t about hours, rosters, or checklists, but about connection, belonging, and purpose.

You’ll hear how curiosity and courage led her to re-examine everything she thought she knew about leadership, and how working at the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Wellness & Research Centre ignited her vision for a more human, innovative, community-centred approach to volunteering.

Along the way, Tracey honours Roz Valentine — a cherished colleague, fierce advocate for the profession and a true ruckus-maker whose legacy continues to inspire bold leadership and compassion in action.

This episode is both a reflection and an invitation to:

• Be bold enough to question the old systems that no longer serve us.

• Stay curious about what’s possible when we lead with heart.

• And make the kind of noise that moves us forward.

Tracey also shares how she’s been inspired by Adam Grant’s work on curiosity and rethinking — exploring how a mindset of openness can unlock transformation in volunteer engagement and beyond.

Because Making a Ruckus is about exactly that — sparking conversations that challenge what’s always been done, amplifying new ideas, and inspiring leaders to create change that centres people and community.

So, as you listen, consider your own bold next step. What ruckus will you make?

Because volunteering isn’t a task or something we manage — it’s how we live in community. And when we design our systems and experiences with belonging, agency, and purpose at their heart, that’s when the magic happens.

Be bold. Stay curious. Make a ruckus.

Connect:

• Learn more: ⁠traceyoneill.com.au⁠
• Join the conversation on LinkedIn: ⁠@traceyoneillcva⁠
• Follow on Instagram: ⁠@tracey.oneill.cva⁠
• Follow on Facebook: ⁠Tracey O’Neill Consulting

Volunteering is changing — and so are the people leading it.

Welcome to Making a Ruckus: Rethinking Volunteer Engagement, the podcast shaking up how we think about volunteering, leadership, and community.

This is your space — and ours — for the disruptors, dreamers, and doers daring to rethink what volunteering can be, challenge old systems, and create change that truly matters.

Because making a ruckus isn’t about being loud — it’s about making noise that moves us forward.

I’m Tracey O’Neill — mentor, speaker, trainer, and consultant helping bold leaders transform volunteering into something deeply human and wildly impactful.

After twenty-five years working alongside volunteers, leaders, and organisations, I’ve seen what’s possible when volunteering centres people and community — and the harm it creates when systems forget who it’s really for.

In this podcast, I’ll bring you both sides of the ruckus — bold ideas, stories, and provocations that challenge how we lead and connect. Some weeks it’s me; other weeks, conversations with global change-makers re-imagining belonging, leadership, and impact.

Together, we’ll ask:
Why do we do it this way?
Who benefits?
Whose voices are missing?
And what could we build instead?

If you’re ready to rethink volunteering, re-imagine leadership, and make meaningful noise that moves us forward — you’re in the right place.

Be bold. Stay curious. Keep making a ruckus.

Connect:

• Learn more: ⁠traceyoneill.com.au⁠
• Join the conversation on LinkedIn: ⁠@traceyoneillcva⁠
• Follow on Instagram: ⁠@tracey.oneill.cva⁠
• Follow on Facebook: ⁠Tracey O’Neill Consulting