If you think ‘Volunteering is a below-standard-position’ then you are wrong.
“Can you please be aside and maintain the queue?” a young boy asked me.
“Yes, but I’m not getting this, why are you telling me?”
I confusingly questioned him back.
“Actually, I’m one of the volunteers of this event.” He replied generously.
Few months back I participated in a Free-Heritage-Walk at Ahmedabad.
With having 200+ of participants, it was too crucial for them to manage such a never-before-seen scenario.
Usually in paid heritage walks, there’s a maximum of 50 persons who can explore enjoying and listening to their personal-guide. But as I told you, it was a different time with me.
Needless to say, such events often run under youth (specifically college students).
And it was the same too. There were about 20–30 volunteers handling and managing the event.
At the same instance, after talking to that volunteer, it reminded me of my volunteering days.
Not only that, it has also reflected upon my very younger days, even before entering into volunteering. This was where I was vigorously believing that ‘volunteering is such a below-standard-position’.
But I want to yell, with a big NO, at myself or anyone, who judges this position in this way.
After serving two trekking camps with Invincible NGO, being a volunteer, I got to realise almost everything(Use LD).
Coming back to the title.
If you think ‘Volunteering is a below-standard-position’ then you are wrong. Tighten your seat-belt and get ready to know why.
Invincible NGO is an organization that works totally by dedicated volunteers.
Wait…why dedicated?
Because they work for free, with love. You’ve guessed it right, every volunteer gets rewarded with not even a single penny, except for a certificate. And I call them dedicated as they are profoundly indulge with their process and what the experience they’ll gain in return (other than a certificate)
Besides, this NGO organises various trekking camps, mostly in Gujarat, and to very popular national sites (such as Manali, Dalhousie, Jaisalmer, etc). And every single camp is entirely managed through volunteers and senior instructors.
At Saputara, in December 2019, it was my first ever trekking camp, being a volunteer.
Okay, let me tell you what a volunteer does across the board.
- Manages the event
- Manages the participants
- Manages the outer-service (like cook inside kitchen, driver, local guide)
- Manages, infact, everything
Long story short, there is no specific duty to follow, if you’re opted for a volunteer-seat.
In Saputara, I was with a team of 5–6 volunteers, where we were supposed to manage two buses, having 100–120 participants approx. among the entire trip which had lasted for 3 nights and 4 days.
- From morning to sleeping time.
- From guiding the cook inside the kitchen to managing the queue of participants.
- From instructing the participants the schedule, every hour, to pushing them everytime, so that schedule won’t get disturbed further.
- From helping the participants at risky treks to keep instructing where to take photos and where not to.
- From this edge to that beyond.
We, volunteers, were supposed to manage everything, as a team. And did the same from day one to day four, full-heartedly.
Then, at the end of January 2020, I went to Polo Forest, being a volunteer, again, for a trek, of about 2 days and 1 night.
All in all, I, including other volunteers, as a team, served the participants accordingly.
Just three things — Manage, manage and manage.
Now you may ask me:
“Nirmit! So, you have served these camps as a volunteer, for free, twice.
Also you didn’t get paid. Not a single penny, just like other volunteers.
Why did you serve it all, just for nothing?”
Before anything else, on the first place, I’d like to say; you cannot say it was for ‘nothing’.
Yes, I agree, volunteering is a free-serving seat, and everybody can opt that.
But…but…but!
It’s worth a lot, a lot more than you think.
Because it has, personally, changed my lifestyle; changed the way I was thinking (opened the doors of awareness).
It has changed me as if I’ve blossomed up like a flower and two trekking camps were my period of blossoming from the roots. And I’m heading your attention towards my learnings, towards what it has impacted me, and …okay now go ahead, hehehe!
“Basically, my purpose of choosing this organization and to become a volunteer was to overcome my shyness along with public speaking. I am a shy-young-kid, hehehe! Fortunately, I’ve figured out where I can work on that, specifically. And I’m glad for that.”
I spoke this infront of 60 participants inside a bus. Yes! We, volunteers, are funny, cheering and very enthusiastic to communicate with participants.
Here’s where we had decided to talk about each of us’ personal purposes of serving this position, in front of them.
A volunteer manages everything, needless to whatever duty is, as i’ve already shared it first.
I started living a life treating every human as a normal-ordinary-human, just like you, just like me after a firm chat with cook inside the kitchen, interacting with driver along with journey (with lots of jokes, for sure), also communicating with local guide of Saputara and Polo forest.
I get to learn different cultures, lifestyles and traditions. I felt humbled. I felt like a home.
Why? Because this has led to opened my eyes seeing everyone as the same. I felt humanity, in a practical way. And yes, why don’t we treat them as humans? I often question that.
This part is amazing — Communicating with participants.
First and foremost, there are lots of participants, and you can’t have time to reply to every participant out there. You simply can’t as if you are a big celebrity, you cannot answer every DM or comment on social media posts.
So, what we, volunteers, were supposed to do is — instructing them everything in brief. And our struggle is to cover up everything in a minute of speech.
Whenever any participant comes to you and asks questions, it often feels annoying, this is where KINDNESS comes to play an important role. You learn to choose kindness.
Apart from certificate, the following elements you can have in your behaviour after approaching a volunteering experience:
- Confidence in Public Speaking — it allowed me to atleast talk infront of 60 participants
- Management Skills — gave me an oppurtunity to manage the entire camp helping the seniors being a volunteer.
- Overcoming shyness — set frothed my attention to talk, atleast where there is real need.
- Kindness — offered me this takeaway as if there’s no option or in a pickle.
- Communication — I’m just blessed with learning new talks in new ways.
- Treating every human as a human — entrusted me to treat each human the same in terms of kind character (may it be a driver, cook, local guide or a participant)
Let’s wrap it up with a quote:
You’ve just read one of the part of an amazing Trekking-Series.
If you find some time then don’t miss to read other parts of this series as well (or save it for later). For now, I’m linking those stories right below:
Okay thanks then, see ya soon with a next topic :)
