December 21 is Volunteer Responsibility Amnesty Day, one of two days every year that allows you to build out your responsibility inventory and decide what you have time for.

Volunteer Responsibility Amnesty Day is about checking with yourself, and ending the commitments you need to end – maybe by taking a break, or by rotating it on to someone else, or by sunsetting a project.

It’s one of the best ideas in tech because it creates space to de-commit from projects we might not otherwise have time for, but we feel like we’d be letting people down by stepping back from. It’s a wonderful excuse to step back from projects that have been weighing on your mind.

What I’m stepping down from

This year, I decided it was time to step down from the Paramiko, Fabric, and Invoke Triage Teams because I had not been active there in years. I volunteered to help triage issues that were always a bit over my head.

I joined when Jeff Forcier needed some extra hands, and it might have helped get another maintainer signed up who could help out more. At PyCon US this year, I got to hang out with Jeff. I gave him a heads-up that I felt like I was excess baggage to the project because my good intentions were no longer turning into helping out the project. I have much respect for Jeff (#teamjeff) and all three of these projects.

If you have free cycles and can help with these projects, please check out the open issues and see if you can help. I use all three beneficial projects in one way or another every week.

What you can do

Suppose you are signing up for projects but are not fulfilling your commitment. In that case, I encourage you to use Volunteer Responsibility Amnesty Day as motivation to step down from whatever project or responsibility you may have.

I also want to call out some members of the Python and Django communities. If you are signing up to help with projects you know you won’t have time for, please step back and encourage someone else to help with those projects and roles. If you know that famous face you see plastered on every website and they are friends, please ask them if they know about Volunteer Responsibility Amnesty Day and share your list. That nudge may help them decide if they are taking on too much.