Many individuals consider volunteering because they want to give something back to their communities. They sometimes hold back and resist taking the plunge because they worry they won’t have the time and energy to commit to volunteering and working in a paid position as well. When it comes to filling the post of volunteer treasurer, many of the duties that need to be performed can seem so overwhelming that it makes folks reluctant to take on the role.
If you have a good bookkeeping software to help back you and
your processes up, so that its quick and easy to keep your accounts updated,
serving as a volunteer treasurer offers several benefits that far outweigh any
concerns that might be holding you back from volunteering.
This is especially true if you want to move up in the
current organisation where you work, or enter a new field completely as
volunteering at a nonprofit offers the following benefits for your career
prospects.
Improve Your Job
Performance by Improving Your Health
Many nonprofit volunteers report that the work that they do
to help others improves their self-esteem, personal satisfaction and confidence.
They also report feeling calmer, less stressed and more at ease. This boost to
your mental health makes you more resistant to the effects of stress and can boost
overall immunity.
When our minds and bodies are healthy, and our immunity and
mood are high, it’s easier for us to resist common colds and other bugs as they
make the rounds in the workplace. This provides an indirect benefit to our
careers since being healthy and resistant to stress reduces absenteeism and makes
it easier to achieve peak performance so that we get noticed and promoted at
work!
Increase Your Flexibility
Volunteering can be a great way to practice your existing
skills, as well as pick up new ones if the volunteer work that you perform
involves tasks and duties outside of your previous background. This makes
volunteering the ideal way to keep your existing skills current as well as pick
up new ones.
Prospective employers that see your volunteer work on your
resume, and become aware of all of the tasks and duties that you fulfilled in
your role are more likely to see you as the flexible and motivated
employee that they need. It can also increase
your chances of promotion and other forms of advancement.
Meet New People
As a volunteer, it’s likely that you will have the
opportunity to meet and talk with people you would never have otherwise. Not
only will you work with other volunteers, but you’ll also probably meet some of the
beneficiaries of your nonprofit’s services. You may also come into close
contact with donors, staff, board members, other volunteers and advocates.
Each time that you meet and interact with someone new, you
are being given an opportunity to connect with people from diverse backgrounds
who share your interests and values. When it comes time to find a new position,
your new connections may well be the ones that help you locate your next paying
position!
Spur Your Creativity,
Cooperation and Critical Thinking Abilities
Most volunteers wear many hats in their organisations. Working
with different groups of people, completing tasks and searching for solutions
on the fly are all activities that you will likely perform as a volunteer.
Activities like these boost your creativity, as well as improve your ability to
cooperate and collaborate on shared projects and improve your ability to
analyse information and reach logical, well thought out conclusions.
So, what’s so great about improving your ability to create,
get along with others and make good decisions? These characteristics just
happen to be some of the top traits shared by the world’s most successful leaders. Serving as treasurer
or other volunteer gives you a chance to polish your leadership and gives you a
head start on how to lead yourself and your team to greater levels of success!
