Don't Volunteer for Free

There is always a wonderfully rewarding feeling in giving your time and talents to a worthy cause. Feeding the homeless, tutoring children, or playing games with senior citizens can all give you a sense of community as well as help you grow as a person in the process. But many young professionals just stop at the warm fuzzy feeling they get from giving back instead of going the extra step taking on leadership roles as volunteers. I call this volunteering for free. Why? Because most of you are overlooking all of the other opportunities in volunteering that can help you in your career. It's like being a waiter that just leaves the tip on the table. Especially if you're actively seeking a new nonprofit job, it's important that you use every chance you get to further your job search process. If you're going to volunteer, try to choose opportunities that allow you to build your resume, make new contacts, or learn a new skill.

Build Your Resume
If you choose a volunteer position that allows you to lead in some capacity, it looks a lot better on your resume than simply "volunteered to clean the local dog park." If your goal is to obtain a job in the environmental field, for instance, you want to show that you can play a leadership role in the organization if they decide to hire you. If you want to go ahead and clean up the dog park or the river, step up and be the one to be the organizer or rally other volunteers so you can state your accomplishments on your resume as "recruited 100 volunteers to clean the dog park, the largest turnout ever." Much more impressive, no?

Make New Contacts
True story. I once volunteered to staff the registration table at an event just so I could meet the organization's CEO and mingle with the staff so I could have a better chance of getting a job there. It was a great way to build relationships with the right people so that when my resume crossed their desk, they already would know who I was.  You have the choice of volunteering at thousands of different nonprofits, but why not make it a win/win by helping out with one of the ones you may want to work for in the future?

Learn a New Skill
No offense, but everyone knows how to ladle soup into a bowl to feed the homeless. It's a worthy activity, but it won't do much for your career as a skill if a six-year old could do it. If you're a nonprofit jobseeker, try your hand at helping out with something you don't already know how to do. If there's an organization that needs help putting up flyers for a new program or campaign, volunteer to be the one to design them even if you have no design experience whatsoever. It could force you to learn a new software like Photoshop or Dreamweaver very quickly and you'll be able to add it to your resume in case your new job requires you to know something about design or print marketing.

Now don't get it twisted. I'm not telling you to stop volunteering. I'm just saying to use your volunteer time wisely. If you're going to give back, use your experience to kill two birds with one stone: help your community and help your career at the same time.

Photo credit: NYE Senior Services