{"id":67587,"date":"2014-04-08T13:45:42","date_gmt":"2014-04-08T18:45:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/?p=67587"},"modified":"2014-04-06T18:24:51","modified_gmt":"2014-04-06T23:24:51","slug":"why-i-like-volunteering","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/?p=67587","title":{"rendered":"Why I like Volunteering"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Gabrielle Spiers, Head Editor,\u00a0INALJ Montana<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Why I like Volunteering<\/h3>\n

\"gabriellespiers\"<\/a>There have been several articles on INALJ over the years about the pros and cons\u00a0of volunteering but rather than go into that I thought I would talk about how\u00a0volunteering has helped me.<\/p>\n

So what kind of volunteer work do I do? Well I am the Head Editor for Montana on\u00a0INALJ, I volunteer on several committees and I volunteer for a cat rescue group and\u00a0for another non-profit with an international focus. That sounds like a lot but a lot of\u00a0these are low workload types of situations.<\/p>\n

I am talking about two different kinds of volunteering here. The professional related\u00a0volunteering opportunities and the more personal related volunteer opportunities\u00a0where you do something because it sounds interesting.<\/p>\n

Why do I volunteer?<\/p>\n

It is a good way to meet people.<\/strong> If you are volunteering on a committee for a\u00a0professional organization then you are meeting people who are in your field and\u00a0that is always good for networking purposes and just generally getting your name\u00a0out there. When you go to professional events especially larger conferences it is\u00a0really nice to know some people in advance.<\/p>\n

It is also a good way to meet people with similar interests so you might end up being\u00a0really good friends or who knows? Romance might blossom. That one might be a\u00a0stretch but I am sure that it has happened! Especially if you are new to the area and\u00a0don\u2019t know many people yet.<\/p>\n

It should be fun.<\/strong> In the interest of full disclosure here I volunteer for a cat rescue\u00a0group so I can pet and play with the cats. My roommate is allergic to cats so I seized\u00a0this opportunity. So there is a lot to be said for volunteering for a cause you support\u00a0and doing something that you enjoy doing.<\/p>\n

It helps you build skills.<\/strong> I can now legitimately tell people that I know how to use\u00a0Wordpress and Archivist\u2019s Toolkit and several other programs that I picked up\u00a0during my time volunteering days. It is helpful to be able to demonstrate that you\u00a0have practical experience. Committee work is also a good way of demonstrating that\u00a0you can work as part of a team.<\/p>\n

You can quit easily.<\/strong> In that situation it is less stressful than a job because most of\u00a0us really can\u2019t just up and quit our jobs. If for whatever reason the volunteer gig\u00a0isn\u2019t working out then you can quit with no real hard feelings. Things change and\u00a0sometimes it really is just a matter of time and most organizations that deal with\u00a0volunteers accept this. In fact they usually expect some kind of turnover. I have\u00a0managed volunteers and the numbers do tend to dwindle.<\/p>\n

It might turn into a job.<\/strong> This has never happened to me personally but it did\u00a0happen to a friend of mine. This is not a library world success story but it is a\u00a0success story so it counts. It would depend a lot on the setting and the organization\u00a0of course. Alternatively of course you might also discover that you really don\u2019t want\u00a0to work at the organization that you thought you always wanted to work at.<\/p>\n

That being said I also acknowledge that it is not feasible or practical for everyone to\u00a0find the time to volunteer and that\u2019s okay too. This is definitely not something that\u00a0anyone should feel bad about.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Gabrielle Spiers, Head Editor,\u00a0INALJ Montana Why I like Volunteering There have been several articles on INALJ over the years about the pros and cons\u00a0of volunteering but rather than go into that I thought I would talk about how\u00a0volunteering has helped me. So what kind of volunteer work do I do? Well I am the…<\/p>\n

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