Volunteering – a natural tonic for happiness
Let’s face it, it’s been a tough week for some of us, if not everyone. Feeling a bit anxious? Having trouble getting over any Brexit blues? Uncertain about the future? Perhaps friends who you thought were friends have let you down? A long hoped for promotion whisked away at the last moment? What to do?
I have been surprised in media musings on the post -Referendum spirit of nation how often volunteering is mentioned. You know the kind of thing – take up exercise, do something different, get out and volunteer. I never knew that it was regarded as such a general tonic.
It is true that many people with a bit of unexpected time on their hands, and an awful lot who don’t have any time in busy working lives, put their energies into volunteering, and judging by the response we get from ELBA volunteers, it looks like a perfect way to get over your post-Referendum blues:
It was a fantastic day full of hard work and laughs.
Great day giving something back to the community. Hopefully it will bring everyone who visits a little happiness.
It was fun and fulfilling and the feedback I received was very positive. Everyone had an enjoyable and rewarding afternoon!
We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves in the unexpected sunshine and I know that we hugely appreciated the opportunity.
The recent Accenture report I mentioned last week showed how the volunteers feel better about their workplace as well, with the majority feeling more positive about it being a good place to work, increased job satisfaction and learning new skills. So it’s a win-win route to happiness it seems.
The same Accenture report predicted a significant rise in employer supported volunteering, and one of the interesting pledges in the Conservative was the introduction of a mandatory three days’ volunteering leave at companies of over 250 people. Now that the referendum is out of the way, it waits to be seen whether the policy will be followed through.
At ELBA we are hopeful that the predictions of increased employer supported volunteering will be realised. We are not pessimistic, as are some, that it will lead to volunteering for volunteering’s sake. We have no shortage of interesting and exciting opportunities which address genuine needs and issues in the communities we serve. The trick as we say so often is to do the match and to make sure that the volunteer feels they are engaged in making a difference, in a context that is sufficiently different from their work that they are excited and stimulated.
So when you are down and troubled, take a different path and don’t ask for a helping hand, offer one. Judging by the feedback from ELBA volunteers above, it should be a happy outcome.
– Written by Ian Parkes, ELBA CEO
