There are countless benefits to volunteering in your spare time. From an employability perspective, you develop crucial skills, gain experience that can enhance your CV and show employers you’re a well rounded individual. From a personal point of view, you are able to meet so many people from different walks of life, you can gain a sense of purpose and pride, it allows you the opportunity to support a cause you care about, and you give your time to support your local community.
I have always looked favourably on volunteering, and it’s something I’ve tried to do since my days as a student in university. In 2015, I had firmly settled into my second year and I began volunteering as an online sales assistant with Oxfam, and a Rainbow leader with the local Rainbow’s group. At that time, I had no clue what I wanted to do career wise, and so I wasn’t volunteering with an aim of enhancing my CV, rather to find a meaningful way to fill my spare time. It’s not until now, six years later, I’ve seen that I can take things out of my time as a Rainbow’s leader to support my professional development. With an aim of pursuing a career within educational psychology, I am able to look back on my experience volunteering with Rainbow’s to pick out relevant skills and knowledge I gained, from working with children on a 1-1 and group basis, to communicating with parents and carrying out safeguarding procedures. And not only that, balancing my volunteering with my university work (and my part-time employment) enhanced my time-management and prioritisation skills.
When the pandemic hit, and I was sent to work from home, I gained the time that I would have been commuting. With on-off restrictions, my social life (obviously) took a nosedive, so I was left with a whole lotta time on my hands that I could only fill with so much Netflix before I was itching for something more… Speaking to a colleague, I was made aware that a lot of companies were looking for online volunteers, and after some digging, I found a youth organisation who were looking for volunteer mentors/wellbeing champions. The organisation works to support young people aged 8-18 and their families, promoting wellbeing and focusing on early intervention. I applied for the role and after being interviewed and accepted, I looked forward to having something in my diary each Friday after work. In my time I have been volunteering with them, I have developed skills in presenting (sessions for the children and also a wellbeing webinar for parents), mentoring, improved my communication skills, gained experience supporting parents and families, and built some positive relationships with these young people to develop their skills and character. All of this adds to my relevant experience to help me on my way to becoming an ed psych, but most of all it’s been incredibly rewarding and I’ve loved it.
Flexible and remote working opened a lot of doors, and I was able to balance my day-to-day to allow me to help out in my local community. I’ve been volunteering my evenings and weekends at the local vaccination clinics, which, it goes without saying, has been the best way to spend my time. The buzz that I’ve gotten from volunteering alongside other amazing volunteers and the nurses and doctors who have worked tirelessly throughout the pandemic has been unmatched. I’ve been close to tears each time - overwhelmed by the pure hope and joy that comes from seeing each vaccine given, bringing us one step closer to a post-covid world. Not only have I been part of what will become a HUGE and incredible moment in history, but I have developed and improved on so many skills, in communication, organisation and teamwork.
I’ve also had the opportunity this year to support my local Foodbank, helping to pack up food parcels a couple of hours in the week for those who come in to use the service. Again, I’ve had the chance to volunteer alongside some wonderful people, including a man from Syria who came to the UK around 6 months ago; he now volunteers at the Foodbank after using the services only months ago himself.
I've now begun a new role, and this has meant transitioning back to commuting/working in the office 5 days a week. My volunteering commitments have had to change, and am now only able to volunteer my Friday evenings and some weekends. But I will be forever grateful of the opportunities I've had this past year.
What skills can you expect to gain from volunteering?
Communication skills - particularly the skills to be adaptive in your communication depending on who you are talking to… I’ve had to develop my skills to allow me to communicate effectively with young people, people with English as a second language, those hard of hearing etc.,.
Team working - Volunteering at 3 places at once alongside my full-time role, I had to quickly adapt to working in different teams of different sizes, each team I work in having a different role and aims.
Prioritisation skills - Balancing my volunteering with flexible working, I’ve had to ensure that my responsibilities in work are not negatively impacted by my volunteering. This means managing my time and calendar to be able to meet my priorities in work and any other commitments or goals outside of work.
Empathy - You may find yourself volunteering to support those less fortunate than yourself. Having the skills to volunteer with empathy means understanding and appreciating the difficulties that individuals can face and being able to relate well with people.
Personal improvements including raising confidence and self-esteem - I’ve really increased my confidence this last year, doing things I never thought I’d be able to do (delivering a webinar for parents; supporting the vaccine rollout) and it’s given me a real boost in my self-esteem, knowing that I am making a difference, no matter how big or small.
What can you learn from volunteering?
Your skills and passions - as discussed, volunteering can help you develop many existing skills and help you learn new ones. These skills can help you progress personally and professionally, and can allow you to realise your passions.
Where you want to go in your career - I like to think that I am pretty set on my career goals now, but I’d be lying if I didn’t think, ‘ooo, I’d quite like to be a nurse’ after a shift at the vaccine centre. You just don’t know who you’ll meet or what you will learn about yourself, especially what you’re capable of or what you’re wanting to achieve. Keep open and flexible, and see where it takes you.
Hidden talents - Never in a million years would I have thought I’d be able to deliver a webinar for parents on wellbeing, but I managed to bring all my skills and confidence gained to the table to give it my all, and I was sooo proud of myself.
How to make a difference and improve the lives of others - For me, the best and most rewarding thing about volunteering is being able to make a difference. The CV booster is a nice plus, but it’s never been my main drive in volunteering. Especially after the year we have had, any way I can give my time to support our move to a post-covid world, and to support those who have been adversely affected by the pandemic, I will be willing to help.
If you find yourself with spare time on your hands, explore what's available in your local community - whether face-to-face or online. You just don't know what you can learn about yourself or what doors it can open!
Read more on how volunteering can help you get a job in Lizzie Thomson’s Metro piece.
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