Many professionals enjoy giving back to their communities and helping those in need. While volunteering is often viewed as mainly altruistic, that doesn’t mean it can’t benefit you as well. By helping others, you can actually boost your career. If you’re wondering how, here’s a look at how volunteering can benefit you professionally.
Build Valuable Skills
Whether a position is paid or not, it can be an opportunity to build valuable skills that make you a stronger professional. You might be able to explore tasks that wouldn’t end up on your plate otherwise or try out a new skill to see if you’d enjoy developing it further. You’ll get new capabilities to add to your resume in many cases, making you a stronger candidate.
Boost Your Network
When you’re volunteering, you’ll meet an array of people. Along with employees of the organization, you’ll likely interact with other volunteers, as well as individuals the organization supports. Overall, that makes the role an ideal way to increase the size of your network. You’ll be able to add individuals from different walks of life, too, potentially expanding your circle in new, exciting directions.
Ignite Your Passion
If your current job doesn’t ignite your passion, you might be able to find that mental boost by volunteering. You can choose a cause that’s near and dear to your heart, allowing that work to have additional meaning beyond the tasks you handle. It will give you a source of inspiration that your current position might not offer, allowing you to keep your mood high.
New Ways of Thinking
When volunteering with a nonprofit, you often have to approach problems a bit differently. Creativity and innovation are often necessities, as many nonprofits have to solve issues while dealing with tight budgets. As a result, you may become better at finding low-cost solutions, something that could benefit you down the line.
Additionally, the broader array of perspectives could broaden your horizons. You’ll get to see how others navigate challenges. If you treat that as a learning opportunity, you might expand your capabilities further.
More References
When you go for a new job, you typically need references. Since volunteer roles are relevant kinds of experience, you can use those people you worked with during those positions. That gives you more references to choose from when the time comes, which could work in your favor.
Land a New Job
While many volunteer positions aren’t designed to go permanent, that doesn’t mean it can’t put you on the path toward something paid and long-term. Nonprofit organizations do have permanent staff members managing specific parts of the operation. By starting as a volunteer, you may be able to work your way toward one of those roles, giving you a chance to become an employee of an organization that matters to you.
Ultimately, volunteering can be a powerful career booster. If you’d like to find out more, the team at The Advance Group wants to hear from you. Contact us today.
