Kadampa Precepts 12

"One day an old gentleman was circumambulating the Ra-dreng monastery. Geshe Drom said to him, "Sir, I am happy to see you circumambulating, but wouldn't you rather be practising the Dharma?"
Thinking this over, the old gentleman felt it might be better to read Mahayana sutras. While he was reading in the temple courtyard, Geshe Drom said, "I am happy to see you reciting sutras, but wouldn't you rather be practising Dharma?" 
At this, the old gentleman thought that perhaps he should meditate. He sat cross-legged on a cushion, with his eyes half-closed. The teacher Drom said again, "I am so happy to see you meditating, but wouldn't it be better to practise the Dharma?"
Now totally confused, the old gentleman asked, "Geshe-la, please tell me what I should do to practise the Dharma."
The teacher Drom replied, "Renounce attraction to this life. Renounce it now. For if you do not renounce attraction to this life, whatever you do will not be the practice of Dharma, as you have not passed beyond the eight worldly concerns. Once you have renounced this life's habitual thoughts and are no longer distracted by the eight worldly concerns, whatever you do will advance you on the path of liberation." 

It is the spirit of renunciation, for want of a better term, that is important. Renunciation in the sense of withdrawal of one of those twelve positive Nidanas. Withdrawal isn't a very good rendering, it's 'nisarana', it's more like I rendered it the other week - disentanglement – though that isn't literal. It's the opposite of refuge, it's 'nisarana', not 'sarana' but 'nisarana', disengagement, you could also say in the existentialist sense. Not taking refuge in something,here not taking refuge any more in the world, not regarding the world or worldly things as your refuge. Not taking refuge in the conditioned. It also suggests non-reliance because you see you can't rely on conditioned things. 
 In dependence on  dispassion, arises 'viraga', which is a state of calmness and freedom from unskilful mental states. Once you've given [them] up then you are free from what you have given up, you are no longer troubled [by] them. It's a state of undisturbedness. 'Raga' is passion, 'viraga' is dispassion, but again it has a very positive sound in Pali. It's also sometimes the word for mrenunciation, 'viragi' in Sanskrit is usually translated as renunciation. The renunciant is a  viragi, one who has renounced, a wandering mendicant, it's one of the terms for him. The viragi, one who has given up everything, the one who doesn't own anything. 
In dependence on insight has arisen the withdrawal, and in dependence on the
withdrawal has arisen the dispassion or renunciation. After viraga, vimutti, freedom.
Drom suggests that if you've got this right attitude this inner spirit of renunciation well it doesn't matter very much what you do, whatever you do will help you. This again brings us back to these subordinate roles, or the supportive activity. If you have got the right spirit of renunciation then it will do you just as much good making cups of tea and clearing up after other people more capable than you, do you just as much good as giving the lectures or leading the meditation classes or going off and starting new centres etc.