Why is it good to serve others?
- It's good for you. Volunteering provides physical and mental rewards. It: a) Reduces stress. Experts report that when you focus on someone other than yourself, it interrupts usual tension-producing patterns; b) Makes you healthier. Moods and emotions, like optimism, joy, and control over one's destiny, strengthen the immune system.
- It saves resources. Volunteering provides valuable community services so more money can be spent on local community services.
- Volunteers gain valuable work experience. You can test out your ability to work under different conditions and in different industries.
- It brings people together. As a volunteer you assist in: a)Teamwork, as you work toward a common goal with people you don’t know well; b)Building camaraderie (mutual trust and friendship by spending time together).
- It promotes personal growth and self esteem. Understanding community needs helps foster empathy and self-efficacy (belief in one's ability to accomplish a task). Volunteering strengthens your community. As a volunteer you help: a)Support families (day care and aged care); b)Improve schools (tutoring, literacy); c)Support youth (mentoring and after-school programs); d)Beautify the community (public space and park cleanups).
- You learn a lot. Volunteers learn things like these: a)Self: Volunteers discover hidden talents that may change your view on who you are; b) Government: Through working with local non-profit agencies, volunteers learn about the functions and operation of our government; c)Community: Volunteers gain knowledge of local resources available to solve community needs.
- You get a chance to give back. People like to support community resources that they use themselves or that benefit people they care about.
- Volunteering encourages responsibility. Community service and volunteerism are an investment in our community and the people who live in it.
- You make a difference. Every person counts! We live in an age where being selfish is encouraged everywhere we look and leads to great unhappiness. The opposite to this is a selfless life which has great long term benefits for our physical and mental health
