Editorial TeamPeople who have volunteered even once in their lives remember the fantastic feeling of doing something good for others. It’s the sense of accomplishment and worth that keeps the volunteering movement alive. People who volunteer their time and effort in their professional and personal life know all the benefits of this selfless activity–making a difference, leaving a mark, improving your skills, and broadening your network. As you can see, many of these benefits are good for your personal and professional growth. If you want to inspire your employees and reap many benefits yourself, here are a few ways your entire company can benefit from regular volunteering:
Improved sociability
It’s imperative for every employee, every boss, and every company to be involved in their community. Through volunteering, people can make their community a better place for everyone, thus providing people with a more pleasant place to live, work and create in. Even small tasks that require help can leave great results on someone’s life and work satisfaction. Bringing workers closer to the regular people and putting them in their shoes allows them to take their work more seriously, figure out new ideas for products and services, and develop new solutions for issues. This will benefit absolutely everyone involved in the chain of volunteering: people who need help, employees, employers, and corporations.
Better health and fitness
Employees can’t stay focused, motivated, and inspired when they are not feeling the best they can. Through volunteering, people can boost their physical activity and reduce stress, which can benefit their performance at work. When employees are not burdened by their physical pain, mental health issues, and general discomfort, ideas flow much more freely.
Better mental health
Volunteering makes people feel good about themselves, which makes them happier, which makes them more inspired. Doing something beneficial for your career and personal growth outside of the office is a real treat to mental health. When feeling stressed and uninspired about work, getting involved in the community can be just the thing you need to renew your sense of motivation, accomplishment, and inspiration.
Betterment of skills
Volunteering motivates people to work harder and improve their skills, both those existing ones and new ones they might acquire during the volunteering process. For instance, corporations that get involved in community service can provide their employees with many new skills. While building housing for the needy, volunteers can learn how to handle new tools, follow safety protocols and work as a team. These are all valuable skills your employees will benefit from in the future. These skills can easily be translated into your office environment and be used to impress clients, bosses, and partners.
Improvement of people skills
One of the biggest benefits of volunteering is the improvement of so-called “people skills”. There’s no better way to experience crisis and counsel people through hard periods than to be a volunteer during natural disasters or give your time to vulnerable groups. Your time might go unpaid, but the skills you’ll learn during this time are worth more than any money.
Making connections
If you and your employees want to broaden their circle of friends, acquaintances, and professional contacts, volunteering organizations are a perfect place for that. According to studies, almost 30% of working people volunteer their time, which means you have an opportunity to come in contact with many professionals. There are no age, gender, nationality, and industry limits when it comes to volunteering, so expect to meet people from all industries imaginable and create an extensive network and better social media profiles that can benefit your career and personal growth.
Increased sense of accomplishment
One of the best ways to inspire your employees is to make them feel good about themselves. And while volunteering focuses on helping other people, it can also improve the volunteers’ self-image. Helping people or animals in need boosts self-confidence and motivates people to do more and strive for more both at the office and outside of it.
Change in daily routine
To stay inspired and avoid burnout, it’s great to have a regular change in scenery and daily routine. Volunteering can get your employees out of the office and give them a break from their regular activities. This change in routine can awaken new ideas, creativity, and motivation in people and improve their future performance at the office.
Volunteering is one of the first signs of civilization and benefits everyone involved. Besides reaping personal benefits from volunteering your time, you and your staff can improve your performance at work and grow as people in every way possible.
Eve Anderson is a marketing specialist turned blogger. Interested in sports and exciting travel destinations. She loves to share content that can inform people.