Volunteering Tip: You Can Have a Busy Schedule and Still Find Time to Volunteer

This article is the first of three in a series about creating a great volunteer experience that I am writing as ambassador of WEVolunteer.tv, a three year initiative by WE tv to get more women to serve. Read the intro to the series here.

Lack of time is the number one reason women don’t volunteer. However, many of us would be amazed at the sheer number of opportunities available to people with hectic schedules. All it takes is a little research and an understanding of what you want out from a volunteer experience.

I’m a pretty busy woman myself. So after signing up on Wevolunteer.tv, I began looking for an opportunity that was one time, 3-5 hours on a weekend, and since I like volunteering with friends, group friendly. I found this great opportunity from Children for Children, a nonprofit that encourages children to engage in service.

Here’s some more detail on why I chose this volunteer opportunity:

• It matches my values: Not just in terms of the cause being supported (hunger) but also in terms of how the event is being run. The event is coordinated and led by the organization’s Youth Planning Committee and is a family oriented service day. I am a strong supporter of youth leadership and love organizations that target families and friends—a great way to get communities involved.

• The ease of communication and reasonable response time: I signed up on wevolunteer.tv and received additional information and confirmation within minutes. My schedule gets hectic really fast so having someone respond quickly helps me plan better.

• It is good for groups and meeting people: This event, like most onetime events, is perfect for large groups which means I can bring my family and meet other people who share my interest and passion.

• There is an immediate impact: Like most onetime events, there is a specific goal set out to accomplish: decorating reusable canvas bags and filling them with healthy foods for a local food pantry. So whether you are painting a room, planting flowers, or taking kids on a field trip, you will see the impact of your work as soon as the day is done. It instills a greater sense of accomplishment.

If you are looking to ease into volunteering, pick a holiday. Yesterday, April 22, was Earth Day and this week is National Volunteer Week which means there are more one time volunteer opportunities aimed at first time volunteers. Also, take time to reflect on these questions:

1. Would you like to take your family or friends with you? Aim for group friendly activities.
2. Are you crunched for time? Look for onetime events on the weekends in the morning or weekdays in the evening.
3. Do you have a specific skill to share? Be mindful that with the exception of labor intensive volunteer opportunities, skill specific opportunities are more long term.
4. Do you have a passion you would like to explore? Sign up for websites like WEVolunteer.tv which is powered by VolunteerMatch and allows you to search by a variety of categories.  The website also lists opportunities on your volunteer page that are in your area.  Check out streetprojects.org as they offer opportunities targetted at busy people.

So even though your time may be tight, you can still tap into you desire volunteer.