Did you work with youth with different interests from you? You knew this would be part of this list, right? If you can spend an afternoon spreading bark mulch on a degree day, that shows a lot about your dedication and work ethic!
Did you interact with people coming through to get a meal at the soup kitchen? Did you interact with customers at a thrift store? What about greeting hello to hikers on a nature trail you were mulching? Every time you were in a situation like this, you were representing both the agency you were serving and YVC.
This is great customer service experience! Did you have to step outside your comfort zone on a YVC project? It might have been scary at the time, but in the process you became more confident.
Did you ever have to explain what YVC was to agency staff, other volunteers at the agency, or even your friends? You were representing YVC and being a public relations expert for us! Did you learn a new skill on a YVC project—anything from how to plant onions to how to remove a nail from a board? Someone probably taught you this skill, and you were receptive to what they were telling you, an important ability in the workforce. All kinds of YVC projects involve organizing, from sorting cans at a food pantry to reorganizing a supply closet in the animal shelter.
At the beginning of the project, your Team Leader and the agency contact give you instructions on your responsibilities. Some even use their voluntary work as a stepping stone to move into a new career.
Some of the advantages of volunteering with us include hands-on experience, ongoing training and skill development. Our induction training is renowned in the charity sector for its quality. We offer volunteers specific training on subjects including safeguarding children. If you are a parent or grandparent, you have a variety of valuable skills for volunteering with our local charity. We support young children, their parents and families.
You do not need any qualifications to become a Home-Start volunteer. All you need is parenting experience. There are many other useful skills for volunteering that you may not know you have. Your own unique life experiences have given you a wealth of knowledge, ability and even expertise. For example, if you have ever suffered from depression, you may be able to empathise and provide a listening ear to others suffering from poor mental health.
Anne was referred to Home-Start by Social Care. She is a lone parent with two children aged five and two. Anne was suffering from depression. Not having had good role models in her own parents meant she also struggled to parent her two children.
Getting a routine in the house was particularly difficult, and the eldest child was often late to school and the home chaotic. Anne found it challenging to go out, so the whole family were isolated. Local parent Jane had useful skills for volunteering her time to spend with Anne. She had suffered from depression herself in the past and encouraged Anne to seek medical advice and take medication.
Many nonprofit organizations rely on volunteers to accomplish day-to-day objectives and to reach long-term goals. Miles4Migrants , for instance, relied solely on volunteer hours for their first few years of operation.
Most nonprofits would not be able to do the important work they do without the power of volunteer work. Nothing gets done by one person alone, which means we have to band together to make the changes we want to see in the world. Volunteerism has indeed been the fuel to the fires of change both on international and local fronts.
Volunteering your time, skills, and resources is one of the most powerful ways to make a difference, to help others, and as it turns out, to enhance your wellbeing. Donating your time, energy, and possibly resources can be just as rewarding for you as for those you are helping.
Here are some ways volunteering can affect you positively:. Being a part of a team with a common goal will help you form bonds with strangers that can be life-changing. Volunteering provides a unique opportunity: it connects people with very specific shared values.
And the values may not be what you think. Building a community in which you are all working together towards common future goals will nurture your sense of belonging and purpose and expand your support system. Volunteering might take you to a new part of your community you have never been to before.
This experience can expand your understanding of others who are different from you. Learning about cultures and ways of life that are different from one of your upbringing will increase your social flexibility and expand your world-view.
It will also raise awareness of the issues that other people deal with and will increase important social skills like empathy and teamwork. What an amazing reason to do something!
Volunteering has been shown to give you a sense of accomplishment and to increase feelings of happiness. Using those skills for a wider, communal impact can be even more fulfilling. Volunteering will enrich your life and give you a broader purpose and can give you a boost of motivation. Volunteering is indeed a known mechanism to help fight all sorts of mental issues like depression, anxiety, stress, and anger. Spending time as a volunteer has been shown to improve your self-esteem! The more opportunities you take to learn new skills and gain knowledge, the more fully you will develop as a person.
And what safer space to develop those skills than in a context of service? Stepping out of your comfort zone and building new skills is the best way to develop your self-esteem.
Volunteering will increase your sense of pride and thus, your self-confidence! When you challenge yourself through volunteering and receive appreciation from others, it can make you feel better emotionally and mentally. Volunteering will offer you skills that can be used throughout your career development. If you are wanting to change to a new career, especially a new environmental or social impact job , volunteering in that new field can help you develop the skills and knowledge you will need.
And because of this, after a while, you get used to people coming and talking to you, and the conversations become easier. I still panic at the beginning of events, wondering what I should say to them and what to talk about. However, you do learn how to introduce yourself and not look like a rabbit in the headlights.
This skill is invaluable as it removes what is known as social awkwardness. Not only this, but it bolsters your confidence when you realise that you have gained the ability to be less socially awkward!
Employers love this as it means that a you will be able to network and make small-talk with clients, and b the office will not be a black hole of silence and discomfort. And sell the fact that you go on international weekend training events and network! Plus, you get extra points if you sell the fact that you not only have interpersonal skills but have intercultural communication skills — i.
In ESN, you work alongside other volunteers in your local section, board or committee. From planning a local event together to joining a national level communication committee and working out how to divide work, there is so much to talk about in a cover letter or interview.
Usually, when volunteering for a local section, you have to learn how to work with the rest of your local ESNers. Depending on whether you are an active volunteer or board member, you will have different responsibilities, but one thing is for certain — you will need to be able to work together to pull off whatever event or project you are working on.
Luckily, learning how to work in a team is something you will need on your CV or during an interview. Because of this, I guarantee you will be asked this too. On the flipside to teamwork comes leadership, an invaluable skill to have as it often shows that not only can you take leadership over projects, but that you can also manage yourself and work independently. At one point during your ESN career, you will have had to take the initiative and lead a project e.
This is where volunteering definitely comes in. Although you may be applying for a graduate position, one of the lower positions in a business, a part-time job during your studies, or even a swanky job in a business, it is unlikely you will need to utilise this skill often during the first few months. Regardless, it is something they look for — it gives you the potential for the future in their company.
No matter how you get your leadership experience, I guarantee you that if you think long and hard enough, you will have had many run-ins with it as a volunteer.
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