Everyday Volunteering: Finding Your Balance

It can be easy to go from being a newbie to an experienced volunteer in a new team. Once you get beyond the learning curve, it becomes easier to think “I have this down” and start saying ‘yes’ to new opportunities. This tends to happen during the first few months after coming to Christ, or when you have found a good match for your volunteer time. Don’t let the excitement fool you into making a big mistake!

Be sure to find a balance between the excitement you are experiencing today and the things you want sign up for tomorrow. I’ve seen too many volunteers burn out by taking that excitement of volunteering and turning it into “sign up for everything fuel” that never stops saying ‘yes’.

While being willing to go above and beyond for a short time may be acceptable, be careful not to jeopardize your family or other volunteers by signing up for extra work that you can’t balance. Our egos have a great time making us think that we’ll have time to help out a little extra, but we often overestimate the time we have and underestimate the time it takes to get things done. This leads to hurt feelings, burnout, and sometimes self-destruction.

Excited about an additional opportunity? Great! Use this excitement to recruit a friend or acquaintance to help out rather than burning out.

Find your balance. Stick to it. Make sure your excitement today will last tomorrow.

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