How Helping Others Creates Valuable Positive Ripples in Your Life
Volunteering creates a beautiful harmony between service to others and self-care. Start volunteering today with the steps included and begin to feel good by doing good.
Dear Spirited Earthling,
Volunteering is freely giving of your time, energy, and sometimes resources to benefit others (people and environments). This service to others also deeply enriches your life, by expanding your sense of purpose, bringing perspective, developing resilience, and increasing gratitude and empathy. Giving your time and energy can create positive ripple effects in your life. Volunteering is about finding the sweet spot between what you love, what you’re good at, and what the world needs.
Other-orientated and Self-orientated Volunteering
To bring in a pop culture reference, in Season 2 Episode 5 of Friends, Joey and Phoebe lightly debate the morality of doing nice things for others. While Joey believes it is an inherently selfish act because you feel good about yourself afterwards, Phoebe doesn’t believe she does these things with herself in mind. As with any morality debate, there is nuance to it and the intention behind the act matters.
Random acts of kindness and volunteering create a beautiful synergy between self-care and community care. When you volunteer at a soup kitchen because you want to support the people in your community by helping provide a warm meal, and you feel good about volunteering afterwards, you are not a selfish or ‘bad person'. If you want to feel good about yourself and be able to tell others that you are a quote unquote good person, so you volunteer at the soup kitchen – well, then Joey would call you selfish.
Published research distinguishes between other-oriented volunteering (typically in the health, religious, social, and philanthropic fields) and self-orientated volunteering (environment, politics, arts and culture, recreational, animal welfare, and work-related fields). Where other-orientated volunteering has more altruistic aspects because the needs of others is the focus, self-orientated volunteering has a clearer benefit to the volunteer - in that social connection and networking takes place, new skills are learned, and career development is possible because of your actions. The study found that self-orientated volunteering is more common.
The Science of Feeling Good by Doing Good
It is widely accepted that volunteering is good for the mind, body and soul. This is what the science of feeling good by doing good highlights:
Mental Health: Volunteering has been linked to reduced symptoms of depression and anxiety. Sometimes, it can help provide perspective on your problems and life in general. This can lead to a greater appreciation for what and who you have in your life, encouraging gratitude and resilience. There is also a reported sense of purpose that can be a mood booster.
Physical Health: People who serve others tend to live longer and self-report feeling physical health benefits. Volunteering can keep you active and independent, helping support body functioning.
Spiritual Health: In many religions and beliefs, giving back and helping others is written in sacred texts and shared in ancient philosophies. Living this truth can help you feel connected to your higher power.
Social Health: Feeling a sense of community and connectedness is powerful. It helps your mental, spiritual, and emotional health. Volunteers regularly interact with people from diverse backgrounds with wide-ranging life experiences. This not only broadens your perspectives and ways of thinking and viewing the world, but it can also increase empathy, compassion, and understanding for fellow humans.
Emotional Health: Volunteers also report feeling more self-confidence and self-worth as they make a difference to someone, their community, or environment.
Life Satisfaction: With all the benefits combined, regular volunteers often report higher levels of happiness and life satisfaction compared to non-volunteers. As you find purpose and empowerment, build social relationships, and share in the teachings of your teacher through volunteering, you support different aspects of your personal wellness wheel.
Yes, there are different orientations or ways of viewing volunteering. And motives and intentions can feature when morality debates occur. However, the takeaway here is that volunteering benefits both the giver and the receiver – and that is a good thing. You are able to fill another’s cup while yours is being filled.
How to Start Volunteering
Volunteering can be through an established organisation or group, taking initiative to clean up an area of your neighbourhood, or simply helping an elderly neighbour with groceries and a tutoring a child. To help you get started volunteering, here are questions to answer and steps to try:
Identify Interests or Passions
This may require some self-reflection and remembering what your values and beliefs are so you can align your volunteer work with them:
What causes am I most passionate about? Animal welfare, environmental conservation, education, or something else?
What do I enjoy doing? Working with children, being outdoors, teaching, organising events, or hands-on work like gardening or construction?
Which organisations and causes align with my values?
Are there changes I want to see in my neighbourhood, city, or world?
If you like to travel, think about eco-projects or cultural exchanges. If you want physical distance, consider online tutoring. If you have healed from trauma, think about advocacy.
Assess Skills
Think about whether you want to utilise the skills you possess or learn new ones?
What are my skills? Good at administration, public speaking, mentoring, fundraising, or creative projects?
What skills do I want to learn? There may be opportunities that offer training or support for volunteers. Getting out of your comfort zone can help you discover new interests and develop new skills.
Your skills may help with direct impact (working with people or animals) or indirect support (social media management, administrative tasks). There are many transferable skills, so be open to different ways in how you can assist.
Determine Availability
Decide how much time you can realistically commit.
Am I looking for a one-off event, a seasonal project, or having an ongoing role?
You need to know your boundaries because like any commitment, over-committing can lead to burnout and negate any potential benefits.
Research Organisations and Opportunities
Think about the impact you want to make – local, provincial or state, global – and research different organisation or volunteering opportunities.
Check reviews, testimonials and impact reports to see if they are credible and effective.
Look at volunteering platforms or websites that can connect you with local community centres, NGOs or wider initiatives.
Ask questions before committing (any expenses like travel or supplies, required training). This can help you understand their expectations from you.
Start Small
Volunteering can be easier when you join organisations and projects that align with your interests. So, starting here is a good idea. But as always, be willing to evolve your interests and try something new. Committing to one project can help you see if this cause or field engages you or not.
Reflect and Decide
After a volunteering experience or project, reflect on the experience.
How did it make me feel? Energised, inspired, fulfilled, exhausted, triggering?
What did I learn?
If the experience was overall good, consider signing up for another project or staying with the organisation. On the other hand, when the experience does not align with you, your values, or lifestyle then it is best to move on and try something else.
Key Takeaways
Volunteering is a beautiful example of how caring for others and caring for yourself is interconnected.
Changing the world goes hand in hand with changing yourself.
It’s okay to try different types and fields of volunteering.
Commit, but don’t overcommit.
Simple acts of service and random acts of kindness create positive ripples in the recipient’s life and within you. I’d love to know about your volunteering experiences. How has giving back impacted your life? Share your stories in the comments below, and let's inspire each other to create more goodness in the world!
Spirited Earthling is more than just a blog – it's a gathering place for kindred spirits drawn by an interest in self-discovery, the appeal of self-care, and a desire for a deeper connection to themselves and the world. Written and created for curious minds and spiritual hearts seeking meaning in everyday life, this blog aims to help you curate your wholesome personal growth with free weekly ideas and affordable resources for sale.
As you navigate your personal growth journey using the words and ideas shared here, consider sharing this blog with someone looking for inspiration or motivation on their own journey. We are all spirited earthlings, and can lift each other together with mindful, connected living.
Thank you for being part of this community.
Best wishes, warmest regards
Jordan
Connect with Spirited Earthling on your favourite social platforms and say hello 🌻
Resources for mind, body, and soul growth available in the Shop ♥
