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So many articles encourage unemployed people to volunteer???


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How is that even possible for a person living on their own and trying to pay bills while seeking a new job? Volunteering seems to be mentioned as a solution which is dumb because wouldn't that take away from job seeking?

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Very good point. However, say you take a low wage job to make ends meet, yes it can be difficult to schedule interviews around working hours as you don't want to lose that job until you find another. However, when it comes to volunteering, it's better than sitting around doing nothing and can be a resume builder to fill in unemployment gaps. Continue job searching and when an interview comes up, it becomes more important than your volunteering and you put your interview as first priority...making the interview happen around your volunteering schedule. It's not like the voluntary job can fire you for taking time out to go to your interview.

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Very good point. However, say you take a low wage job to make ends meet, yes it can be difficult to schedule interviews around working hours as you don't want to lose that job until you find another. However, when it comes to volunteering, it's better than sitting around doing nothing and can be a resume builder to fill in unemployment gaps. Continue job searching and when an interview comes up, it becomes more important than your volunteering and you put your interview as first priority...making the interview happen around your volunteering schedule. It's not like the voluntary job can fire you for taking time out to go to your interview.

 

 

What do you mean sitting around doing nothing? You would be doing Job search related activities which involves applying, researching, and networking

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todreaminblue
How is that even possible for a person living on their own and trying to pay bills while seeking a new job? Volunteering seems to be mentioned as a solution which is dumb because wouldn't that take away from job seeking?

 

 

volunteering can open up job opportunities, provide community references from people of good standing and often someone knows someone else sort of scenario where you can find a quick track to a new job opening, searching papers is great job agencies but so is actual working in the community unpaid can lead to paid and its good for your whole community so bonus.......i dont have to job hunt i am going to follow my heart and i have done community unpaid work...but I can.....deb

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What do you mean sitting around doing nothing? You would be doing Job search related activities which involves applying, researching, and networking

 

Mostly a figure of speech, but I mean rather than just sending out resumes and waiting for a response (a lot of resumes go into a black hole) volunteering can help you end up with a paid job. This happened with my brother who eventually started getting paid, but the job itself just didn't workout well for him later. Wasn't a good fit. Let's be honest, most people don't spend all day doing job related activities. A lot of employers will tell you to apply online and you have to wait and see if you hear back and if not, to follow up. There's really only so much you can do in a day to find a job.

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I don't understand that either. Volunteering is good but how does it solve any problems when you have to pay the bills?

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It doesn't take long to figure out why you should do it...

I found a quick list thru google...

Basically it keeps you fine tuned for work, keeps you networked and helps with a good positive attitude..

 

 

1. It’s fulfilling.

 

2. Maintain camaraderie & stay active.

 

3. Building skills or maintaining current ones.

 

4. Avoid gaps on your resume.

 

5. Networking with professionals.

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volunteering can open up job opportunities, provide community references from people of good standing and often someone knows someone else sort of scenario where you can find a quick track to a new job opening, searching papers is great job agencies but so is actual working in the community unpaid can lead to paid and its good for your whole community so bonus.......i dont have to job hunt i am going to follow my heart and i have done community unpaid work...but I can.....deb

 

 

It can only open up opportunities if it's in your field. If I had a volunteer opportunity to edit and revise resumes twice a week then it would be a good thing to do since I;m trying to get a job as a "career coach"

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Mostly a figure of speech, but I mean rather than just sending out resumes and waiting for a response (a lot of resumes go into a black hole) volunteering can help you end up with a paid job. This happened with my brother who eventually started getting paid, but the job itself just didn't workout well for him later. Wasn't a good fit. Let's be honest, most people don't spend all day doing job related activities. A lot of employers will tell you to apply online and you have to wait and see if you hear back and if not, to follow up. There's really only so much you can do in a day to find a job.

 

I agree but I do which is a 8 hour shift and my position is job strategist

 

spend 3 hours scanning emails and applying to posted jobs

 

spend 2 hours researching and learning new information

 

spend another 3 hours emailing and staying in touch with contacts and scheduling networking lunches,

 

 

I know 2 people who don't job search at all and I don't understand why

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It doesn't take long to figure out why you should do it...

I found a quick list thru google...

Basically it keeps you fine tuned for work, keeps you networked and helps with a good positive attitude..

 

 

1. It’s fulfilling.

 

2. Maintain camaraderie & stay active.

 

3. Building skills or maintaining current ones.

 

4. Avoid gaps on your resume.

 

5. Networking with professionals.

 

 

I do number 2,3, and 5 everyday in my apartment. You don't need to leave your apartment to stay active.

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I do number 2,3, and 5 everyday in my apartment. You don't need to leave your apartment to stay active.

 

It definitely helps. A lot of times you need to meet the manager or hiring specialist in person and build a good rapport. If you're showing genuine interest other than submitting your resume or talking on the phone, this is a step up to getting the job.

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It doesn't take long to figure out why you should do it...

I found a quick list thru google...

Basically it keeps you fine tuned for work, keeps you networked and helps with a good positive attitude..

 

 

1. It’s fulfilling.

 

2. Maintain camaraderie & stay active.

 

3. Building skills or maintaining current ones.

 

4. Avoid gaps on your resume.

 

5. Networking with professionals.

 

Right on all of the above. Additionally, a volunteer is sending a message that he's not going to just sit at home and feel sorry for himself.

 

OP, I absolutely agree that it's better to be employed full-time, but...if that's not you, then it might not be a bad thing to volunteer on the weekends. I don't think the advice is to volunteer at the expense or in lieu of work; it's what to do when you're either unemployed or under-employed, the latter being just as common as unemployment these days.

 

So much of getting a job is going past the online applications and getting in the mix with the right people. Networking is how people get jobs, and it's how they stay in the right circles, and increasingly, this is how business works. It's always been not just what you know but who know...but now, who you know is the difference between having a job and having nothing. People want to know who you are before they can hire you, and guess what...they can be pretty choosy right now.

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I don't understand that either. Volunteering is good but how does it solve any problems when you have to pay the bills?

 

You're more likely to be noticed. Granted, the volunteer opportunities have to be chosen carefully, and not all volunteer positions are going to be good for networking. But volunteering does put you in front of people, and some of those are people you might want to be around.

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You all seem to be viewing Volunteering as unpaid work.

 

This i would have to say is the wrong attitude, volunteering is a social activity which mimics a working environment, think of it as a hobby.

 

To say you cannot work volunteer and job seek effectively while still maintaining down time is ludicrous,

 

24 hours in a day sleep for 6-8, that leaves us with 16 hours, work for 8 that leaves 8 take 2 hours for travel and food that leaves 6 you can socialise for 2 that leaves 4, you can volunteer in this time period and lets not forget a real job search unless you pounding a highstreet can be done online on a smart phone these days or borrow a computer when works not busy, it takes on average 30 minutes to fill out an application form for a big company.

 

The trick is to get motivated stay active and you will find you can fit far more into your day than you ever expected.

 

Think positivity not negativity about activitys in life and it will become far less time consuming and far more rewarding financially and emotionally.

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