VOLUNTEERISM: A SURE WAY OF EXCELLENT SKILLS ACQUISITION.

Volunteerism - the social practice of volunteering ones time, skill, knowledge with the intent to help in bringing needed assistance to a community, organization, group or cause in which one has interest in, committed to and engaged in. Also a form/ class of formal and informal education that provides a volunteer with benefits of:

• Learning best industry/ sector work skills;
• Building professional contacts and networks;
• Making better career decisions;
• Getting mentoring assistance;
• Building and sustaining an interest to become commitment;
• Obtaining mainstream sector information;
• Satisfaction of contributing to a better society.

There is usually no best time to start volunteering; one can start as early as a teen. After sometime of volunteerism and adding value to one’s community or organization, cause, the young person is equipped with relevant skills that recruiters need, hence they are usually in the best position to get those job positions that many apply for.

It also of interest to note that young people who volunteered at one time or the other do better in work places, move up the ladder faster than those who didn’t do any volunteer work, have a network of professional contacts and groups that benefit the work, knowledge and experience of the young person and assist in times of challenges.

A young person after sometime of volunteering has a better capacity to startup a business in a sector/ field in which he/her volunteered and will do better than the other guy without such experience. In starting up this business he creates employment that engages some unemployed, adds value to a community and also contributes to the local economy that attracts more businesses / opportunities that would employ more young people directly and indirectly I terms of young people that may decide to volunteer to serve and get better skills. The chain continues.

In all young people who volunteer their services / skills acquire better and excellent skills that in the long run will always help them throughout their work life, and I must add that they usually don’t go searching for jobs, jobs comes to them.