This informal CPD article Helping Others Could Help You was provided by Alison, Free Online Learning Provider.
If the pandemic has taught us anything, it’s that the status quo is fragile. We never know when the stability and normality of our daily lives might be turned on its head. However, one major positive of the last year has been that the global, national and local responses to Covid-19 have seen people work together and put the greater good ahead of personal comfort. Actively considering the well-being of others has become second nature.
While many of us will eventually see our lives return to normal as the virus recedes, there will still be those less fortunate whose pre-pandemic situations were far from ideal. And while we hope that coronavirus will soon disappear, we can hope that the goodwill the pandemic has generated will not.
Over the last twelve months, many people have reevaluated their priorities and perhaps reordered them. Thinking about the wellbeing of others might prove a hard habit to shake. Charity work and volunteering are two avenues that the goodwill generated by Covid-19 can be directed into and you might be surprised to find that helping others could be the best thing you’ve ever done for yourself.
Expand your horizons
Volunteering, whether it be aiding with the elderly or helping to welcome refugees into the community, can open up new worlds of life experience beyond your own. No two lives are the same and by helping those whose experiences might be wildly different from your own, you expand your horizons and broaden your sympathies and understanding.
Learn about yourself
It’s often outside of our normal routine that we learn most about ourselves. We can sometimes lose sight of ourselves within our habits and schedules, so breaking out of our daily experience can allow us to see ourselves in a new light and learn more about who we really are and our prerogatives. By getting out of your comfort zone and helping others in need, you expose yourself to new experiences and thus get the chance to see the world, and yourself, from a new angle.
Skills aren’t just for work
While your skillset is valued by your employer and your colleagues because of how it helps the business function efficiently, you’ll appreciate your talents in an entirely new way if you use them to make the world a better place. If you’re an accountant, why not use your expertise to do the books for a charity in need of bookkeeping advice? If you’re an Operations Manager, why not donate your knowledge and experience to a fundraise in need of management?
Compassion
One quality that remains priceless is compassion. In any walk of life, in all cultures, privately and professionally, understanding and sympathising with others is a paramount virtue. Charity work requires compassion above all other attributes, and by exercising your compassion in helping others, you not only benefit them, but everyone else you subsequently come into contact with. Helping others isn’t a job that stays in the office. You will find that the compassion you exercise through charity work follows you back home and into work the next day.
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