Volunteering Pays off
In one way or another, donating your time to volunteer will eventually pay off through building a network for yourself, using the volunteer experience as part of your resume for a job application, or getting hired at the place you volunteer. Who knows, you may even have a little fun while volunteering and having fun is always a good thing.Finding a place to volunteerThe first step (after deciding to volunteer in the first place) is to choose a location in which to volunteer at. There are many options out there in your community, whether it's the type of volunteering you would be doing to whether the position would be something temporary or more on a permanent basis. If you are more partial to office work, then look for volunteering that is suited towards that. If you prefer doing manual labor and working in the outdoors, then there are volunteering positions just like that too.A good place to look for volunteering positions is the website (http://www.volunteermatch.org). This website was endorsed by President Obama who urged Americans to volunteer more to help their communities. Whether you agree with Obama or not, (http://www.volunteermatch.org) is worth checking out for opportunities in your area.Do not forget to check out the local hospitals, libraries, or nonprofits in your area. These places look for people to volunteer their time and are easy ways to get involved. For these places, you will have to go to the location in person to fill out the volunteering application.Think outside the box. If there is a field you are interested in or want to get your foot in the door, head over to that organization and ask if you can volunteer. They might say yes or they might say no, but you do not lose anything for asking. If they say yes, it is a good way to get a feel for the field without too much effort on your end. It also gives you experience to use later on and to start networking with people you can call back on when you decide to take more than a step through the door.Finding something to match your needsNot everyone has needs that match up exactly the same, and that is okay! Like I mentioned early, there are various different types of volunteering positions and it is up to you to take a closer look to see what fits your needs the most. It may be that what suits you is a volunteering position that you can do every Saturday while you work in a garden. Or maybe you would prefer volunteering in an office type of environment that you can do from Monday to Friday in the mornings.Find something that fits you. If you just jump into the first opportunity you see without thinking about it, you may find yourself unhappy, especially considering that you are not getting paid. Instead of furthering yourself, you would only hurt yourself in the long run with wasted time and people that you can never network with. Do not do that to yourself. Be happy.You may even find that the first couple of volunteering positions you do end up in are not suited to you, and that is also okay. Just be upfront with your supervisor and end the volunteering with them, leaving both sides with neutral to content feelings. Just keep looking until you find something that you enjoy and, as a bonus, will be something you could use for numerous reasons that I have stated above.Using your volunteering to further yourselfWith volunteering under your belt, now is the time to use it. Perhaps you were brilliant in what you were doing that the place you volunteered at decided to hire you in some capacity or another. Wonderful! If not, there is still the use of asking your supervisor as an excellent reference as well as someone you can use as part of your networking.If the volunteering position was in a chosen field you wanted to go into, it is a great piece of experience to use in resumes and job interviews. You will have a step up from other applicants because you have on the job experience.Feeling good about yourselfI cannot end this article without mentioning the spiritual and social aspects of volunteering. Helping others can help you feel better about yourself and is a definite plus of volunteering. There is also the feeling of satisfaction when you know that you helped your community become that much better. It is not something tangible that you can hold, but it is something you can carry with you as you move forward in life.
