Hacks on Building Life Skills By Volunteering

Volunteering is a great opportunity for you to make a difference in others’ lives and society. You will also get to make a difference in yourself through many ways.  Not only do you get to make new friends, you gain confidence, satisfaction and skills! Indeed, volunteering hone life skills that will eventually benefit you in professional and personal space. In this article, we share a list of life skills you can gain by volunteering.

 

What Life Skills Can You Learn By Volunteering?

1. Teamwork

There are many things in life that can be achieved more efficiently with combined efforts of a team. As a volunteer, you will often get to work alongside with others and also under different managers. In order to pull off any projects, you will learn to be responsible for your task and also collaborate with others.

2. Leadership

Leaders are not born but are made with knowledge and experience. Volunteerism will expose you to opportunities to lead projects and manage people working under it. 

3. Communication

Working in a team requires a lot of communication – verbal and written. More often than not, volunteers and beneficiaries come from a range of ages and backgrounds. You will get to practise effective communication outside your usual circle.

4. Organisation and Planning

There are many stages and process towards completion of a project. You will learn to plan the timeline and organise resources well to carry out projects efficiently. 

5. Time-Management

Juggling task and deadlines are prevalent in many aspects of our lives – studies, work and even social. As a volunteer, you may get the chance to deliver time-bound projects. By learning to prioritise tasks assigned, you will get to hone your time-management skills and work more effectively.

6. Problem-Solving and Critical Thinking

Many non-profits organisations usually have to carry out projects and solve problems with limited resources. Therefore, volunteering with them gives you opportunities to think critically and creatively, and be resourceful in order to achieve goals.

7. Relationship Building

Being able to build meaningful relationships is important in many areas of life. You will never know how the people we meet can support us in different ways – emotionally or professionally. Volunteering will introduce us to people who are outside our usual social circle and broaden our horizons with different perspectives. 

8. Empathy

When working with beneficiaries of organisations, it allows us to have a chance at practising empathy with those who are in different shoes. Being able to see from different perspectives can help us communicate better with those from different backgrounds and reduce the chances of conflict and misunderstanding in future.

9. Self-awareness

As you receive feedback from other volunteers and managers, you will get to understand yourself more. Being self-aware and able to reflect is the key to self-improvement. Consider keeping a journal to track what you have learnt and also how the volunteering experiences make you feel.

10. Ability to Learn

The skills required in volunteering can be very diverse. Volunteers also have a chance to play multiple roles. Each new role is a chance to learn new skills. Change is the new constant especially in this rapidly-changing era. The ability to learn will help us to adapt and keep up with the future. We will also never know how certain skills we gain from volunteering will eventually come to use.  

 

When and how can you start volunteering?

It is never too late to start volunteering. No matter which stage of your life you are in, the life skills gained from volunteering can benefit you in the professional and personal aspects of life. Volunteering experiences can be a valuable addition to your resume if you are looking for jobs or career progression. On the personal aspect, volunteering can benefit your social and emotional well being by bringing a sense of meaning and appreciation. 

You can start searching for charities and non-profit organisation in your area, and find volunteer openings listed on their website. If you like to make a difference in the space of empowering the next generation, we would love to have you as our volunteer. Reach out to us here! 

Alternatively, you can register with a volunteer matching organisation.   As a social enterprise with limited resource, we have benefitted much from engaging with Skills for Good to connect with skilled volunteers to handle the marketing aspect. So far, Skills for Goods has matched us with volunteers to create electronic digital mailers and also content for our social media platforms to raise awareness on financial literacy. Here’s an article to read more about our partnership. 

Volunteering provides a win-win situation for volunteers and social organisation. As organisations strengthen their capabilities and impact with your effort, you are also making a difference in yourself by learning these skills.