WHY do we volunteer, as individuals?
Posted by Jeff Berndt on Thursday, September 24, 2009
Under: Fresh Perspective
I have found, in conversation with others, that we all have different reasons for volunteering and for serving others. For some it is simply done out of a sense of duty. For others, it is the desire to be recognized (which, funny, few people will ever admit to). Also, many people feel that they can grow, as a human being, through serving others. And still others need to serve because they feel the need to repent for their own past actions. So, they believe that by giving back, rather than taking, they will "balance the scales", so to speak. And often it is a combination of any of the above reasons and some that I have failed to mention.
I bring this up because earlier today I had a discussion with a friend. In my friend's opinion, if one engages in service for selfish reasons, then it is wrong. Only those who have purely non-selfish reasons should pursue service. Sort of a neo-Kantian philosophy. After thinking about it for a moment, I asked him if the Elderly woman who will get a visit from one of our volunteers this Sunday will be at all concerned with the underlying reasons for the visit. His response was:
"No, but the fact still remains that if the reasons for the visit are selfish on the part of the volunteer, well, then they will eventually stop volunteering because they will never fully satisfy those selfish reasons. And then it is on to some new undertaking to try to satisfy themselves."
My response was simply-"So what!"
All I care about is that the lady in the nursing home doesn't have to feel lonely, or isolated on Sunday. And if I am totally honest about my own reasons why I do what I do, well, thr truth is that there are selfish reasons. I want to feel good about myself. I do feel that I need to "give" more than "take", because in the past all I did was "take". And, yes, I do desire recognition. I want to hear someone that has been served by TheWorkmanshipgroups to tell me that we make a difference in thier life. And, I venture to say, I'm not unique in this sense.
Well, the one thing I appreciated about this conversation was that it did make me think about why I volunteer. And I do agree with my friend that if the only reason one involves themselves in service work is purely selfish, it will quickly lose it's "novelty", and it's one to a different method of self-gratification.
So, I challenge you to honestly assess the reasons for your involvement. If they are strictly selfish, step back and try to see it from a selfless perspective. I guarantee that your volunteer/service work will be much, MUCH more satisfying and rewarding. Ironically, it will more than likely that at that point, your so-called "selfish" desires will be met.
We grow the most when we fix our gaze OUTWARD rather than INWARD.
I bring this up because earlier today I had a discussion with a friend. In my friend's opinion, if one engages in service for selfish reasons, then it is wrong. Only those who have purely non-selfish reasons should pursue service. Sort of a neo-Kantian philosophy. After thinking about it for a moment, I asked him if the Elderly woman who will get a visit from one of our volunteers this Sunday will be at all concerned with the underlying reasons for the visit. His response was:
"No, but the fact still remains that if the reasons for the visit are selfish on the part of the volunteer, well, then they will eventually stop volunteering because they will never fully satisfy those selfish reasons. And then it is on to some new undertaking to try to satisfy themselves."
My response was simply-"So what!"
All I care about is that the lady in the nursing home doesn't have to feel lonely, or isolated on Sunday. And if I am totally honest about my own reasons why I do what I do, well, thr truth is that there are selfish reasons. I want to feel good about myself. I do feel that I need to "give" more than "take", because in the past all I did was "take". And, yes, I do desire recognition. I want to hear someone that has been served by TheWorkmanshipgroups to tell me that we make a difference in thier life. And, I venture to say, I'm not unique in this sense.
Well, the one thing I appreciated about this conversation was that it did make me think about why I volunteer. And I do agree with my friend that if the only reason one involves themselves in service work is purely selfish, it will quickly lose it's "novelty", and it's one to a different method of self-gratification.
So, I challenge you to honestly assess the reasons for your involvement. If they are strictly selfish, step back and try to see it from a selfless perspective. I guarantee that your volunteer/service work will be much, MUCH more satisfying and rewarding. Ironically, it will more than likely that at that point, your so-called "selfish" desires will be met.
We grow the most when we fix our gaze OUTWARD rather than INWARD.
In : Fresh Perspective