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Volunteering for Your Future
(Part of the Follow Your Dream series)
by Kathie Hightower and Holly Scherer
Okay, so you’ve done the interest inventories and information interviews.
You know what your dream career is. You are ready to apply for a job
that fits.
Then you move with the military and what you want to do is simply not
available at that location. What do you do? Give up? Settle for a career
field you aren’t that excited about? Take a job, any job? Unfortunately,
that is what many of us do.
A better idea would be to see if you can find or create the job you
want via volunteer work. If that isn’t possible, identify the skills
you will need for that dream job — be it computer, marketing, managing
others, fund-raising, PR — and find volunteer work that will teach
you those skills.
I had just started into the seminar business when we moved to Germany.
The seminar companies I’d interviewed with did not have any international
work. I couldn’t afford to set up as a business in Germany (with
the high tax rate and complicated laws) so I couldn’t market my
seminars to corporations located there. I feared that the progress I’d
made in my seminar skills development would quickly fade if I didn’t
keep at it. So I found volunteer opportunities to speak. A new acquaintance
told me about the American Women’s Activities Germany (AWAG) conferences.
I sent a proposal and ended up doing six workshops that first year and
numerous ones every year after that. From that I spoke at many area
AWAG workshops. From that I spoke at many wives club meetings. I volunteered
to do free workshops about Job Finding Skills and Personal PR in our
community.
Not only did all these volunteer presentations keep my skills up and
improve upon them, it gave me testimonials for my marketing packet and
visibility that eventually resulted in some paid work as well. Let me
mention that this was in the days before the Army’s AFTB program.
If that program had been available it would have been the perfect place
to get lots of platform time as well as some added Train the Trainer
courses.
My fellow members in the National Speakers Association are envious of
the opportunities I had to speak internationally — in Germany,
Italy and Belgium — that mark me as an International Speaker. Not
to mention the pleasure I derived from traveling to and speaking in
fabulous places like Garmisch and Bamberg and Heidelberg and Vincenza.
And it came mostly from volunteer work.
I’ve built my writing business the same way, using a regular column
for the Ft. Lewis Wives Club newsletter followed by the Heidelberg Wives
Club newsletter as the stepping stones to continued writing. Now I continue
with a mix of paid and unpaid writing as I build the skills and portfolio
I need to pursue my dream of writing fulltime.
Other military spouses have applied the power of this tool. Sherry Kearn
had been working as a secretary although her dream was to open and run
a bakery. When she moved to Bamberg, Germany, she couldn’t find
a secretarial position. She saw that as an opportunity to pursue her
dream. She took a job with a Subway Sandwich shop with the express purpose
of learning all about running a small business, learning what works
and doesn’t work, so she’ll be ready when she opens her bakery.
Sarah Selvidge wanted to work in marketing, so she volunteered at the
community’s Marketing office to learn the ropes. Rochelle Roberts,
who knew absolutely nothing about computers, volunteered at the ACS
Referral office, providing her daily opportunities to learn the computer.
She was even sent to local training courses. Nancy Weirsma wants to
own her own Cat Resort.
She first volunteered at her Community’s Vet clinic and was eventually
hired at the vet clinic at her next location, giving her the opportunity
to keep learning the ropes — and building her credibility —
before she puts her own money and time into her Cat Resort.
So what if you have to earn a living — have to take some job? Well,
then apply the concept to your job search. Look for a job that allows
you to learn or improve on some of the skills you will need in your
dream job. And on the job ask for opportunities to take on projects
or training that will enhance those skills. And if you do fit in some
volunteering, look for those projects that advance your skills.Volunteering
— it’s a win-win proposition.
©2002, Holly Scherer and Kathie Hightower
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