Read 70 times since Monday, August 22, 2011
Volunteering opportunities can come in many forms. Luckily, in the age of information, you can quickly find hundreds of options on the web. Whether you're looking for opportunities in your area, opportunities in other areas of the UK or even abroad, there's plenty of options only a submit form or a phone call away.
Firstly you must decide what kind of volunteering you are interested in taking part in. Ideally, it would be best to be involved in something you are passionate about. Being passionate about a cause would not only make it more enjoyable and meaningful for you, but it's likely to make you do a better job. You are likely to have an understanding and a pre-existing emotional connection with what you are taking part in.
Secondly, you must gauge whether the cause you are giving your time to is a just cause. I think you would hard pressed to find un-ethical volunteering opportunities, but some causes are definitely more worthwhile than others. Will your time improve people's lives? Improve wellbeing? Or even save lives? The more ethical the cause, the more likely you are to find it rewarding in the long run.
Volunteering can be really enjoyable, rewarding and character building. But it can also have a great effect on your career. Employers love to see that you have worked for a cause without the prime motivation being pay. It shows that you are generous with your time, you're conscientious and ethically inclined. Employers need to be able to trust their employees, and nothing gains trust like giving up your time to help others.
Voluntary work can help you gain new skills or improve skills you already have. Interpersonal skills are vital in order to be successful in the working environment and this is a very common component of any work you're likely to take part in. Generally any skills which involve speaking to people or communicating can be improved upon. Depending on the cause you're involved in, more specific skills can also be developed. For example, you work for a charity for which you are trying to increase donations. In order to get people to donate to the charity, you need to market their cause and this can take many forms. Let's say they have a website which asks for donations. Can you increase the traffic to their website? Optimise their landing pages? Improve their on-site copy? It doesn't matter what skill you're looking to work on, it's very unlikely there isn't a cause that would be more than happy to provide a platform for you to work for them while honing your own abilities. The Army Cadet Force offers a range of qualifications for cadets to help develop leadership skills through the Cadet Vocational Qualifications Organisation (CVQO). If you want information on voluntary work with the Army Cadet Force visit www.armycadets.com
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