volunteer Essay Examples

Volunteer Essay Example

Free Work or a Whole Lot More?

In this day and age, we find it strange to devote our limited time in order to work hard for free as this sometimes seems an absurd idea but we can actually find that it may not be so crazy after all. One can gain a real sense of achievement and well-being through volunteering roles. Volunteer can feel good about doing something rewarding, giving it back and bring you satisfaction. Along the way, you may even meet people and develop your personal skills.

Enhance Your Skills

If you’re thinking of the future, you may find that volunteering will give you a chance to enhance your skill set and career down the line. Whilst volunteering, you’ll be essentially working for free and so you’ll learn a whole lot, honing in on various skills. What’s more, employers often favour candidates that have had a degree of volunteering experience because this shows hiring managers that this candidate is more of a rounded human being with many soft skills that they could bring to a role. Volunteering often improves and diversifies your skills, getting you to do things that you wouldn’t normally be doing - this will impress people during a job interview, if you can talk about how these new skills will benefit the employer.

Future Employment Prospects

If you’re sailing on the sea of uncertainty in terms of career, taking a break and doing some volunteer work can really give you time to consider and reflect in a positive environment, allowing you to explore other possibilities. When volunteering for an organization, you’ll be given a chance to meet all sorts of people and rise up to new challenges, making you a complete person and also giving you an insight into the working nature of this structure. With a multitude of companies to volunteer at in a number of ways, e.g. working as an unpaid intern for a marketing company or working as a charity fundraiser for a cancer charity, there are different avenues and organizations to explore. As you spend time volunteering, you can get to know the people and the organization itself, making you more equipped to find out what you want to do in life. If you love the place you volunteer at, perhaps you could apply for a role there? If you work hard volunteering, you’ll be known in the organization and will be the first on the hiring manager's mind when an opening comes available.

Social Contact

Volunteering somewhere is a great new way of making friends, networking and getting new contacts. If you take a moment to consider the kind of place you can volunteer at, it’s hardly going to be a dirty enterprise or an organization full of dishonesty and backstabbing, quite the contrary. Volunteer for a charity, for instance, and you’ll find that the volunteering environment is overwhelmingly positive and people there will be working towards the same goals in a like-minded way. You’ll be sure to meet others that share your passions and engage in a positive sense of camaraderie, working together to get things done.

Well-Being and Health Benefits

It’s no surprise that volunteering roles can really add value to a person’s health. A quick look at some scientific studies will reveal that volunteering has a wide array of positive benefits, most commonly a decrease in anxiety and depression, increased self-esteem, reduced dependence on other people, better social skills and better integration into society. Some of the most profound benefits have been to the elderly generation who may feel isolated as they can’t get around and don’t work, yet volunteering gives them a chance to meet others more easily. If you’re engaging on doing something good, this can take your mind off anything that’s troubling you - this is one of the main reasons as to why volunteering is such a good idea when you’re suffering from depression or social isolation. A lot of people who are ill can also take their mind off their illness in a similar kind of way. Essentially, there’s a lot of good you can do as a volunteer and so there’s a lot of good you can feel. Doing good will make you feel better - there are no two ways about it.

The Good You Can Do

Whether you have the time to volunteer or not, it’s difficult to escape the fact that volunteering can bring about real positive change for your cause and to you as a person. No matter where you come from and what your social background is, volunteering organizations will have a place for you and a role that will make you feel better, or at least the science says so. If you’re curious about volunteering, why not give it a go today?