Tonight I am going to
an event at one of my volunteer positions. The purpose of the visit is to
describe to the guests how I am assisting that organization by reviewing
resumes and offering job search coaching and tips to needy individuals. I
looked hard for a not for profit who could use my skill set to assist its
clients and this was a great match.
Why Volunteer?
There are many reasons to volunteer including getting out of your house and making a difference. As far as being beneficial to your job search though, there are three major benefits:
·
Improve/maintain
your current skill set (Think: resume)
·
Learn
new skills (Think: resume. Think: career change)
·
Grow
your Network (75%-85% of jobs are gained through networking)
In every job search class I take an unofficial pulse of the volunteer activities of the people in attendance. Less than half of the people I’ve polled have volunteered since losing their jobs. In addition, as a whole, 100% of every group never recognized the three major benefits of volunteerism.
What’s keeping people away? The responses vary but generally fall into the, “I never thought about it”, “I don’t know where to go”, I’d like to but I don’t have the time”, and the always present, “If I were volunteering, when would I have the time to look for a job?”
The benefits of volunteering outweigh the responses. Even if you offer an hour or two a month, you are out of the house, sharing your skills, learning new skills and meeting the people who might be able to network for you. Find something that you love whether it is at an animal shelter, library, soup kitchen, religious institution – anywhere!
Volunteering is a job
search strategy. It’s good for the volunteer organization and it’s good for
you. Here are some sites to get started.
.jpg)
No comments:
Post a Comment