Many people wonder why volunteers like to work for free. You may be asking yourself the same question- either because you know someone for whom volunteer work is more important than other priorities, or because you’re a volunteer yourself or are thinking about becoming one. Regardless of where you stand on the issue, there are many factors we’re not aware of when we get involved.
10 Reasons Why Volunteering Is Enjoyable
1. It Gives You a Sense of Freedom
Tasks you can take on as a volunteer include tutoring children in reading and writing, helping sick people bathe, and doing office work. It’s also possible to volunteer on an environmental project. In addition, there are organizations that take care of stray animals and need volunteers to help feed them, clean their enclosures and cages, take them for walks and play with them.
Many people are looking for the right volunteer opportunity in humanitarian organizations to help refugees, war victims, and other social causes around the world.
The freedom to do what you want is definitely one of the main reasons people choose volunteer work. There are so many opportunities that you can feel free to do and no one else decides for you. You can also stop at any time, which gives you a great sense of freedom.
There are also some ways to volunteer without having to leave your house.
Thanks to the internet, you can take advantage of a variety of ways to make social change, whether it’s by volunteering for a good cause or joining a nonprofit organization. If you want to get involved from home, you can!
The more freedom you’ve in life, the happier you’ll be. Life is too short to spend it doing things that don’t make you happy.
A sense of freedom is a sense of choice and control over your own life, including the ability to make your own decisions free from outside constraints or controls.
Community service gives you the feeling that you at least have the freedom to do this.
2. You’re Contributing to a Good Cause That’s Important to You
Everyone is motivated by a purpose, but for many people that purpose used to be associated with money. As our society has progressed, the focus on money has diminished and more and more people want to make a difference.
The “paid” work that most people do today is often no longer the source of their motivation.
You feel good about what you do and how you make a difference in the world. Even if you don’t get paid for it, it’s important to know why you do what you do.
It’s amazing how doing something nice for someone else makes you feel better. It’s almost like you feel doubly good knowing you’ve done something good for someone else and feel good about it too.
When you go out of your way for a cause that’s important to you, you feel like you’re part of something bigger than yourself.
Therefore, volunteering for a cause you care about can make a big difference in your motivation.
3. You Get to Make New Friends
When you volunteer for a cause you believe in, you have the benefit to meet new people and expand your network and social skills. The great thing about volunteering is that you’ll meet people from diverse backgrounds and ages, from younger generations like college students to older people.
When you commit to a volunteer activity, there’s nothing more fulfilling than meeting like-minded people from diverse backgrounds who share a common interest because like you, they’re committed to making a positive impact for a good cause.
For example, if you work at an animal shelter, you’ll meet people who, like you, care about the physical health and emotional stability of animals, or if you volunteer at the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, you’ll find people to talk to about topics such as the latest mental health news, health benefits, etc.
There’s a positive impact of meeting new people that makes you feel good.
When you meet someone for the first time, your body releases dopamine into your bloodstream. Dopamine is a neuromodulatory molecule that’s naturally produced by our brain.
Dopamine is associated with joy and other positive emotions. It also helps us focus on certain activities and block out distractions.
4. You Learn More About How the World Works
When people take their first steps into the world of community service, they often do so because they want to give back. But what they don’t expect is how much they can learn from their volunteer experience.
Volunteering experience is part of the University of Life and as such is a place where we learn everything about the cause we’re working for: society, geography, history, politics, and much more… Social causes have to do with so many topics that sometimes we learn a lot without realizing it.
Education is good for your brain, lowers your stress levels, and boosts your confidence when you meet with other people. It also boosts cognitive skills like memory and problem-solving ability. By learning new things every day, you increase your overall intelligence.
Some scientists even say that it’s health benefits and increases our life expectancy.
5. You Feel Useful to Society
There’s no better feeling than feeling useful and valuable. I don’t think all the money in the world can match that feeling. It’s just great to get out there, make a contribution, and know that your presence means something to someone, even if it’s just something small.
You love volunteering because you feel like you’re being useful to society, and most of the time you get something out of it. You feel like you’re a part of something bigger and that your voice matters.
You see the results of your actions and you feel like you have a voice in this world, and that makes you feel like you’ve accomplished something and you’re making a difference.
6. You Gain Skills and Work Experience
In addition to the obvious benefits of volunteering, you also gain valuable skills and experience that will help you in your future professional life.
Community service expands your personal skills and also helps you develop job-related skills.
Tasks such as planning, organizing, communicating, and leading are part of many people’s everyday work and can be learned during volunteer service. You can take on small tasks, such as making tea and coffee, or larger ones, such as helping with research or policy development. You’ll learn how a nonprofit organization works, the challenges it faces, and how it can improve.
The skills and experience you gain will boost your confidence at work and in interviews, and when you’re confident in your career, it’s life-changing.
7. Your Volunteering Experience Can Open Your Eyes in Your Future Job Search
For example: During your community service with a volunteer organization, you may learn a new skill (e.g., social media management) that you never thought would be part of your volunteer work, and when you get involved, you find that you have a hidden talent that makes you want to change your career direction.
Another example: If you take a volunteer position with a nonprofit organization in your local community, you may happen to work with the hiring manager or someone who knows your future potential employer, who may discover the benefit of hiring you after seeing how good you’re at volunteering.
Related: What Is the Difference Between Global and Local Community
8. It Makes Your CV Look Good
Volunteering is also good for your resume! You can add it to your CV, proving that you have the skills needed to successfully complete a project.
9. You Gain Confidence
Volunteering can also make you feel better about yourself and the world around you. You’ll see how much needs to be done and how much good can be done with the right attitude.
When you help others of your own free will, you feel good because you’re helping someone who needs your help. You’ll also see that some of your actions have a real impact on people’s lives, thus your contribution.
Self-confidence can take you far in life and help you achieve the impossible.
10. You Learn About Yourself
From socialization to knowledge, every volunteer experience you’ve is part of your development.
Volunteering gives you the opportunity to learn more about yourself and your own culture.
When you get involved in a project that’s different from your daily routine, you may discover something unexpected about yourself.
Through your actions, you’ll be exposed to new challenges, new situations, and new ways of doing things that challenge your opinions, beliefs, and attitudes about life. Sometimes these challenges will be difficult, but they’ll make you think more deeply about yourself and how you act in the world as a member of society.
Feel Inspired With Volunteering
We’ve all been there: you’re looking for a new job or you just lost your job and you don’t think you’ll ever find work again. In this situation, it can be easy to feel like a failure and a burden to those around you.
With the right volunteer work at the right volunteer organization, you can take back control of your life by taking responsibility for yourself, gaining valuable skills and work experience, making new friends, and improving your social skills while working for a good cause.
This not only boosts your self-confidence but also helps reduce feelings of isolation and loneliness that can exacerbate depression and anxiety.
The feeling when you’ve done something good feels great. As humans, we can’t live without experiencing emotions, such as being happy, sad, or angry.
Volunteering helps us focus on the positive instead of dwelling on the negative. When we help others, we find it easier to appreciate again what we’ve in our own lives, even if it’s only for a short time.