Volunteering

The Landing Expert has another good post called "Volunteering
While in Transition has many Hidden Advantages". In this post Alex Freund mentions some of the advantages of volunteering when one is unemployed. He says that volunteering can be a satisfying experience because it puts someone in a situation where they may actually hear a thank you - something that all of us like to hear from time to time. Volunteering also is inherently enriching and satisfying. And when you give, you also get.

I'd like to add a couple of my own thoughts about the hidden advantages of volunteering and how it can be beneficial to anyone who is unemployed. Making a commitment to be somewhere at a specific day and time is important for someone who is out of work. When a person first finds himself unemployed, there is a sense of disorientation. The routine of getting up and getting ready for work is no longer a necessity. In the beginning of the "transition" period - as Alex Freund calls unemployment - it feels really strange not to have a set routine and a place to go at a specific time. Then, of course, once one settles into a more relaxed schedule, it can be hard to remember what it is like to have to get up and get going. Complacency can set in. I've heard a number of unemployed people complain about having to come in to see their career counselors or complain that it is difficult to come in to the computer lab to do their Skills Tutor work. How difficult was it to get up every morning and get to work???

Volunteering can help alleviate some of this complacency. When someone else depends on you to arrive at a certain time and stay for a certain period of time, it can be a very good motivating experience. One that will help the unemployed person want to get up and go and get ready for when he/she gets full time employment.

Another hidden advantage to volunteering is to learn about different fields of interest. Volunteering gives a person an opportunity to try something they have never done before, learn new skills, explore talents. So many of the people I see at Network RI have been in one industry for their entire career. During this time, they have developed many skills in their field, but really haven't had the chance to learn new things. I believe that period of unemployment give a person some opportunities - and the opportunity to do new things is one of them.

Can you think of any other hidden advantages of volunteering? Do you volunteer? Are you planning to volunteer in the future? Please let me know what you think.