Volunteering During Your Job Search

“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” – Gandhi

“We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.” – Winston Churchill

This concept follows in-line with the Gratitude Journal.  During one of the more challenging times in your life, can you shift your focus to the people around you?   The quotes from Gandhi and Churchill are on the mark.  Focus too much on what the world should do for you, and you miss a key point to life. This also helps to shift your focus from yourself to others around you.

One of my excuses not to volunteer more used to be the busyness of work, the packed schedule, the lack of energy at the end of the workday, the time away from the family, etc.  Which of those excuses do you have when you are in the job transition mode?  Not many.  So, the excuses have been removed, now you have to decide to embrace this opportunity.

There are a couple of positive aspects to this volunteering activity.  

• The first is that it gives you something to do that has a schedule, an activity and likely some other human interaction.  This alone is probably sufficient justification. 

• Secondly, you turn your focus outward and get reminded that there are other people in the world that might have it worse than you.  Acknowledging that, as challenging as things might be, there are others worse off should help level your emotional IQ (or EQ).

• Third, is the fact that during your volunteering you likely get a chance to network.  You might end up working next to someone that knows of an open job or can make an important introduction.  Expanding your network should not be the driving force here, but a nice side benefit.

So, if you buy into the concept of volunteering to put something positive back into the universe and to help your mental well-being.  The next decision is what you should/could do.

Here are a few ideas:

-       Coach a youth sport

-       Help at a local school

-       Tutor a neighborhood child

-       Pick up some duties at your religious entity of choice

-       Volunteer to pack some food for a needy charity

-       Habitat for Humanity

-       Serve meals for the homeless

-       Spend some time at a nursing home

-      If you are a singer, join a choir

The list can go on and I encourage you to let your imagination wander and gather suggestions from the people that are most important to you.

The most important part of this suggestion is that you spend time away from the job search.  You will be focused on others and hopefully the activity and the people that you are engaging with will be enough to keep your focus off the job transition.  This creates healthy breathing space for you, an activity that takes specific space on your calendar and helps the world to be a better place.  There are worse things than being in a job transition and you might have the unique gift of time during this event to make a positive impact on others.