Voluntary work finds its fulfillment intrinsically rather than monetarily.
Voluntary work, although lacking monetary reward, offers long-term benefits that far surpass money. Volunteering can build your reputation for being a caring person with a strong work ethic. According to the Timebank website, 73 percent of employers would prefer to hire someone who has served as a volunteer.
Job Experience
Indeed, by volunteering you can gain new skills you never thought you had. You can also gain skills you never had time to develop in a normal work environment where you are working for a commission or a paycheck. According to the Volunteerworker website, this becomes important when we consider a career change. Indeed, gaining these new experiences can make a good resume look great.
Health Benefits
Scientists have conducted studies to attest to the health benefits of volunteering. The Timebank website cites perhaps one of the most famous of these studies, which became the source of a book written by Allan Luks in the late 1980s. Overall, researchers found that, among people who volunteered, immune systems became stronger, insomnia improved, and they were more likely to recover quickly from surgery.
Moreover, according to the Corporation of National and Community Service website, studies by various researchers demonstrated through longitudinal studies, especially among older, married couples, that the five-year mortality rate for those who do not volunteer tend to be higher than for those who do. Perhaps those who give their time freely have an increased reason to go on living.
Networking
Voluntary work also affords the opportunity to make new friends. In making new friends, you may meet someone in a position of authority who can vouch for your character to the point that you may find yourself at the top of the decision-maker's list once an opening arises for a paid position in the company.
In addition, even if the people you meet don't have that degree of influence, you may still be able to form close, fulfilling relationships with people you can honestly call your friends.
Skill Development and Testing
As the Voluntaryworker website points out, voluntary work affords the opportunity to develop new skills, as well as test skills you already have. In a volunteer job, the worst thing that could happen is that you find out you might not be as good of a fit as you thought for a certain kind of job.
However, the opposite also could happen during the course of your volunteer job. Your supervisor may ask you to train and manage a group of fellow volunteers. You may find that you are able to perform so well in this capacity that you wish to go back to school for management, or to become a teacher.
