Does volunteer management ever make you cry? It does, doesn’t it? I mean, when you are sitting there and a volunteer recounts their struggle with being bullied as a child or they tell you about their journey through rehab or their fight to beat cancer, you just break down and cry because you care and feel their pain.
And then there’s the pride cry when we witness volunteers wrapping a child in their arms or brushing the tear off the cheek of a grieving spouse. We well up when volunteers win an award because we witnessed their profound effect on those we serve. We weep when volunteers suffer a loss or when we see one of them grow fragile. We cry openly when they leave because they mean more to us than the hours they’ve spent.
But do you ever cry out of frustration? When it’s all your body can do? I remember crying like that once. I was managing a resale shop with little to no resources except the great volunteers. I would borrow a hospital laundry truck to pick up donated furniture and ask an able-bodied volunteer to go along with me on the route that I had meticulously mapped out. Depending upon where the pickups were located and how much the donor had planned to donate, the route made maximum use of the truck.
It happened during the last stop one day. It was 5:00 pm and I had to unload the truck at the shop and get it back by the hospital’s evening laundry run at 6:00 pm. The hospital had already sternly warned me that if I didn’t return it by 6, (I’d been late returning it several times already) they would not lend it out anymore, so I needed to hurry.
My volunteer, Peter and I parked in front of the last house and got out. The donor was waiting to meet us. “I know I said I had two pieces of furniture, but we’re moving and I want you to take all of it.”
Peter and I looked at each other. He and his wife had dinner plans with relatives who were visiting from out-of-town. “We won’t be able,” I began to say, but the donor cut in. “It has to be gone tonight. I thought we could get it into storage but we can’t. Our son was in an accident and he’s taken a turn for the worse.” His voice trembled. “We need to get to him.”
Peter and I started to gather the furniture and haul it into the truck. The cargo space was nearly full and we had to jam the furniture in any way we could. I looked at my watch and realized that there was no way I could get the truck back in time. That meant the hospital would stop loaning it to me and the arduous task of having to find another vehicle all over again loomed.
I knew that Peter would miss his milestone birthday dinner with his family. He didn’t say it, but I knew how important this was to him. My body was tired, my mind exhausted and thoughts of “what am I doing all this for anyway, I can’t get ahead,” began to swirl. My careful planning meant nothing now. Standing there in the back of the truck amidst all the tangled lamps and chairs, I broke down. It was so defeating.
Peter stopped and gave me a minute and then he said, “Look, it’s ok. We’re going to do this. I can join my family when I get home, it’ll be fine.”
“But it’s your birthday. Some birthday. I made you miss it. And they will take the truck away,” I said through tears.
Peter nodded and said, “Yes, they probably will. But look, you’ve got us. All of us volunteers and we will figure this out. We’ve done it before and we will do it again.”
We finished that night almost three hours late. I thanked Peter and drove the truck back to the hospital where my car was parked. After I gave the keys to an angry attendant, I got in my car and headed home. As I drove, I broke down and cried again.
This time though, I wept because I was surrounded by volunteers like Peter.
Do volunteer managers possess the skills required to succeed in the corporate world?
I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Sally Garrett, a recent leader of volunteers who has taken a managerial position in the world of retail. Sally was the manager of a St. Vincent de Paul depot, an Australian branded “Vinnies” retail thrift store, the highest grossing and net profit store in Western Australia while under her leadership.
VPT (volunteerplaintalk): Can you briefly describe your current job?
S (Sally): My Current job is as a Retail Manager of a lifestyle super store with 26 paid staff.
VPT: How long have you been in this position?
S: I have been here 1 month.
VPT: Before this position, what was your job as a volunteer manager?
S: I ran a large not for profit processing and pick up depot and retail outlet.
VPT: How long were you in that position?
S: Two and a half years.
VPT: What skills do you feel you developed as a volunteer manager and how did they translate to the position you now have?
S: The biggest skills I developed are empathy, patience, organizing people, time management and being able to teach others that they are more than they believe they are.
VPT: What skills helped you the most in moving into your new position?
S: I guess because I had been rostering and managing large volumes of people all doing small roles, the biggest skill that has helped me in my new role is patience. You can’t rush volunteers and you develop a skill of being able to step back and look at the bigger picture all the time, so it became a habit to stop, look and listen. This has helped so much in my present job, because as I have a lot to learn, I am not at all overwhelmed. I am much more rounded in my approach to my team and I listen a lot more and act less, but it’s action with conviction. This means when I do act, it is for the long-term and not the short-term.
I have already found that many people can sort out problems for themselves and become self autonomous rather than needy. I can quickly detect when people are good at what they do or need better training because I’m watching them and listening. I’m not trying to learn their job so much anymore, but placing acknowledgment in what they can do. This has made my new team feel more confident and then their skills began to shine.
The second skill is having learned to not take credit for what others do, but rather celebrate their gifts and achievements. I don’t feel the need to own others’ successes. I have developed the ability to lead, not manage.
The third, most important skill is that I don’t take anything personal. I am impartial to people because I know it is about them not me, and every action someone takes says things about them, not me. So, if someone is frustrated they may call me names or tell me I am not doing my job but this translates into the fact that they are telling me they need more training and are feeling overwhelmed or vulnerable. This took a long time to learn. I always thought I was doing things wrong in this situation until a volunteer pointed out to me that the other 120 people loved what I did and felt supported, so once this skill kicked in it just meant going back to basics and taking time for a cuppa and a chat and getting to the real problem which was 100% of the time the person left feeling vulnerable for some other reason.
VPT: When you accepted this new position, did you find that your volunteer management experience helped you get the job? Any actual feedback from your new supervisor on your volunteer management experience?
S: When interviewing for the position I applied for, I was calm and confident as I knew I had become a leader and not a manager so the interview process was easy and effortless. I had nothing to prove; they either wanted my skill set or they didn’t. If I wasn’t a good fit, I didn’t want to be there.
I was asked to take on a much larger role than I applied for in the interview; the position was in another shop as they felt I would be of value in that role with a larger team and a busier store. As it turns out I came across as soft and compassionate but with a deep knowledge of people. This is what progressive organizations want. They don’t want bosses anymore, they want team leaders and that’s what you are as a volunteer manager.
VPT: Are there skills that volunteer managers lack, or do not realize are important if they are seeking jobs other than in the world of volunteerism?
S: Acknowledge your value!
I believe a volunteer manager is much more qualified at team leadership than anyone gives them credit for, including themselves. It is a huge task being a volunteer manager and when in the role it doesn’t feel it is that important, but you touch the very core of people when they are a volunteer. Because they aren’t there for money, you find out more of what makes people tick so translating that to paid staff roles, you are able to make your staff really feel cared for when they come to work.
You have developed an ability to shut the work-space out and make eye contact and listen to them and answer their questions. whether it be personal or work related. You have developed the ability to validate people, and that’s what our world needs more of. You are also able to adapt quickly because volunteer management deals with absences regularly. You know how to get work done with few, if any help. Acknowledging the confidence that you know it will get done when the team is there, gives you a calmness and that drives people to help more and work harder. People love that you are in control and that you appreciate their efforts rather than stressing and then making them feel less when they are giving more. All volunteer managers develop this skill.
VPT: How can volunteer managers prepare themselves to enter the world of corporate management?
S: Be the very best version of yourself, it’s really that simple; being authentic and not promising things you can’t deliver, the rest falls into place. When you develop the calmness of self-confidence, you can learn anything; the skill of managing people is the highest of all skills you need in life and work and you have that in the bag once you are a successful volunteer manager.
VPT: Is there any advice you would like to give your fellow volunteer managers?
S: Give them (volunteers) 15 minutes undivided attention and induct, induct, induct!
Make sure when your volunteers start, you have given them your time whether it is 15 minutes at the start or the whole induction if you can, that time is what the volunteer remembers, because volunteers revere you; they know how hard your job is and they see you as their guiding light. If you only knew how powerful you are you wouldn’t worry about a thing. But that’s where volunteer managers are the most successful. We don’t settle for second best because it always has to be the best. Aiming for the stars on every task is what we do. Landing on the moon is not good enough for us, but it’s great to everyone else.
Know you are saving lives! There is a high number of volunteers that are volunteering due to mental illness preventing them from holding down a paying job. Know that you are potentially providing the healthy, stable and compassionate environment that these people need to gain new skills and give their life purpose. It surprised me to be told on three occasions that it was because of me, personally that three people got up and tried again another day rather than ending their lives. It both shocked me and made me seek help myself to understand my role more fully. The knowledge of each person over my time in Volunteer Management truly made me see how I changed lives and how powerful and responsible my role was and how important it was to be transparent in all I did. I had to understand that it wasn’t my responsibility to take this knowledge on board personally and that it was only a part of the role. But the knowledge was confronting and it changed my dealings with people. Compassion isn’t being weak, it is the exact opposite.
Relax more and stress less, develop the ability to tell people they can do it on their own. Softly, gently encouraging and convincing people they are wonderful and able, is the greatest skill ever. It is the most productive management tool in the workplace.
What incredibly inspiring words for leaders of volunteers. Thank you Sally for sharing your wisdom and experience with us. All the best to you in your new position. They are very fortunate to have you on board.
So, the next time all of you volunteer managers feel under appreciated, remember these words from Sally: I was asked to take on a much larger role than I applied for in the interview; the position was in another shop as they felt I would be of value in that role with a larger team and a busier store.
Director of First Impressions Volunteer: Wow. What a concise, succinct way to advertise for a front desk or receptionist volunteer. The ad then goes on to talk about how important it is for clients to experience a first impression that is compassionate and helpful. Gosh, I want to be that volunteer.
So, what verbiage appeals to prospective volunteers? Is it silly, eye-catching titles or serious, touching the heart ads that bring volunteers in? And does the same ad appeal to millennials and baby boomers, working adults and students, community service needing and weekend warrior potential volunteers alike? And anyway, are there foolproof ads that once you’ve created them, you can then just magically sit back and answer the ringing phone?”
Clearly, marketing has a tremendous impact on companies that sell goods and services. If we think of ourselves as selling goods (enhanced life experiences) and services (ways to help the community), then we can think of our potential volunteers as consumers who can pick and choose where they will spend their valuable time. So, how do we market to them?
Here are just three creative ways to frame a volunteer ad:
1. Describe the benefit to the organization.
2. Describe the benefit to the client served.
3. Describe the benefit for the volunteer.
So, let’s take a simple job title such as “volunteer receptionist” and re-imagine it in the above three ways:
“Director of First Impressions:” The word ‘director’ exudes importance, and ‘first impressions’ neatly describes how this organization genuinely cares for their clients and is striving for excellence with every paid and/or volunteer position.
“Imagine How Hard It Is To Need Our Help:” This immediately frames the position in the eyes of the client and elicits an empathetic feeling for those who are being served.
“Where Else Can You Feel Like You Have Thrown Out a Lifeline:” This ad goes right to the heart of volunteerism-making a difference.
And what law says we can’t use all three ads for one position at the same time? Who knows which approach will attract the kind of person you are looking for because ads exist to quickly capture attention. All three ring true; they are just different ways of framing meaningful volunteer roles in punchy descriptions. If you can combine all three ways without becoming too verbose, then by all means, give it a go.
But can we even go further and be even more creative? Why can’t we inject some playfulness? How about an ad that asks, “What Intergallactic Volunteer Character Are You?” (Or another current and popular theme). Create a description for a few popular characters, such as:
The Scavenger Captain: You’re roguish and free wheeling, this job is flexible. We won’t tie you down!
The Robot Sidekick: You’re diplomatic and precise, this job needs your attention to detail.
The Galaxy Princess: You’re strong and smart and destined to lead our rebellion against hunger.
Want to advertise for a thrift store volunteer? How about “Are You the First One at Garage Sales? Come, Help Sort Through Our Treasures Where It’s A Garage Sale Everyday.”
Do you need something very specific? Celebrate it! Web help might become, “If You Know What This Is, Call Us: 01101000 01100101 01101100 01110000.”
There are catchy volunteer ads out there that say, “show off your basketball skills,” “do you love cats and acting,” “do you walk by homeless people not knowing what to do,” “be the role model she’ll remember always,” “50% of school age children in our town go to bed hungry.” A few great ads tell a personal story: “Meet Ed. He will sit alone in his room today unless a volunteer comes to visit. Will you be that volunteer?” “Sarah received a scholarship in part because she volunteered. If you can you use a scholarship, call us!”
Do you have multiple locations? Tack the location onto the ad so that potential volunteers know they can stay close to home or work or school. You can say, “Be the Role Model She’ll Always Remember in Springfield” or “Calling All You Bristolians Who Dress Up Their Dogs.”
And if your program has won an award or has been feted in any way, use that to your advantage: “Join our award-winning volunteer program!”
Refresh your ads frequently. Keep statistics on the more successful ads so that you can start to track what is working and for whom it is working.
You can also put together a focus group of volunteers to come up with creative ads that they believe will appeal to their peers. Marketing students are also an excellent resource for help in crafting creative and appealing ads.
Well, then, how can we jazz up that soul-sucking Data Entry Volunteer ad? (and you know what always surprised me, there are people who want to do this kind of volunteering because it’s sort of like washing dishes by hand, it gives them a chance to just quiet the mind).
“Monotonous, Repetitious Data Entry Volunteer Job For That Amazing Person Who Knows This Work is Critical. Help Our Clients While Decompressing in a Calm Environment. We’ll Play Some New Age Music.”
Does this line of questioning sound oh so familiar? “Why don’t we have enough volunteers to be an Emergency Buddy? How hard can it be to find people willing to be called in the middle of the night to come by our headquarters to get the emergency plan for the district, drive out to the emergency shelter and then get a shelter spot ready for arrival? I mean c’mon, do you not know how important this volunteer job is? Have you actually tried targeted recruiting? There must be scads of retired emergency personnel who would love to use their talents to help us.”
Well, huh. Why didn’t I think of that the last twelve times I tried targeted recruiting, or maybe I was wrong to try and think out of the box by recruiting those great college students. Perhaps I should lie to potential volunteers so that they don’t know what the job entails? I’m sure that once they realize we lied to them, they’ll forgive us and won’t do a lousy job just because we trained them improperly .
There’s a study that indicates companies spend more resources weeding out lousy employees than they do cultivating superior talent. This lopsided approach often applies to organizational views on volunteer recruitment.
The more important the volunteer role, the more up front work is required in order to place excellent and ready volunteers. Proper vetting, orientation and training takes time and effort by hard working volunteer managers.
Sure, warm bodies can fill roles, but cold, hard facts say that
Warm bodies ultimately:
Leave abruptly, usually within the first three months
Do not sync with the organization and remain on the outside
Can do irreparable harm to clients
Volunteer managers understand how much effort it takes to cultivate a qualified volunteer. Because we abhor the “warm body” theory, we will continue to be accused of not providing “enough” volunteers for critical roles.
When pressured by senior management to magically produce more bodies, point to the lack of harmful behavior by your competent volunteers. Remind them that properly vetted and trained volunteers do not damage the very people we serve and oh, yeah, properly vetted and trained volunteers take time and skill to implement.
And maybe ask the person this question: “Would you want a hastily recruited and insufficiently trained volunteer working with your mother, father or child?”
“Tenderness and kindness are not signs of weakness and despair, but manifestations of strength and resolution.”
…Kahlil Gibran
You have a volunteer that is problematic and you are at the point where you believe you have done everything possible to integrate that volunteer. You’ve examined your personal feelings on the situation and feel that you have removed emotion from the equation and are dealing with the challenge in a logical way. So, now what to do?
Well, think of this acronym- Face It: Fit, Attitude, Change Adaptability, and Expectations through Intervention within a Timeline. I know it’s a mouth and mindful but hopefully it will help in remembering how to go about working with challenging volunteers. When integrating a volunteer becomes difficult, use this acronym to see if, after interventions within a timeline, there is improvement. Let’s look at each letter in FACE IT.
Fit: How well does the volunteer fit, not only within the organization, but in her role, with other volunteers, and in the mission? Is the job just the wrong fit or does her philosophy not mesh with the organization’s mission? Does her personality clash with all other volunteers and staff? Is she there for some underlying agenda?
Attitude: Does the volunteer have a troublesome attitude? Does he incessantly complain? Does he undermine? Is he excessively negative? Is he disrespectful to his supervisors and co-workers? Does he feel that he is superior to the tasks and to the mission?
Change Adaptability: Is the volunteer able to weather change? Does she dig in her heels when faced with a new policy? Does she refuse to adjust and claims that because it was always done a certain way, you have no right to progress? Does she subvert the mission because she cannot accept new ways and new people?
Expectations: Is the volunteer meeting clearly defined expectations? Is he chronically late or a no-show? Does he ignore rules and regulations? Does he do whatever he wants without regard to organizational needs? Does he feel that it is not important to communicate with you? Is he a Lone Ranger, but without the white hat?
These are four pillars of excellent volunteering. When one or more pillars become troublesome, an intervention with that volunteer is necessary. Sometimes it’s just life’s stress that causes great volunteers to go off course. Intervention is never mean but instead, indicates that you notice a change in the volunteer’s behavior and that you respect this volunteer’s contributions and want to help him succeed.
But help without clear objectives and timelines is futile, so let’s look at the second word in the acronym and the steps of implementation.
Intervention:
1. Meet with the volunteer to discuss the area(s) that need(s) improvement.
2. Point to your rules and regulations, policies and procedures to illustrate your concerns.
3. Present your evidence, but emphasize your desire to help the volunteer succeed. While note keeping on volunteers may seem underhanded, without details on egregious behavior, your “case” is broad and hearsay. Besides, specifics help a volunteer see the exact behavior that needs improvement.
4. Reiterate your commitment to working with this volunteer and then lay a course for how the volunteer can improve.
Timeline: I can’t emphasize this enough-Timelines are critical. How long do we give a volunteer to improve? Having a clear deadline is effective. Having some random phantom goal in the future will doom your intervention every time.
1. Set follow up meetings at intervals to monitor improvement.
2. Make sure you collect evidence of the volunteer’s performance for further steps.
3. Always meet on premise.
4. Have at least one other staff member present. This not only gives you another set of eyes and ears, but limits the “he said, she said” aspect and shows the volunteer that you have the support of the organization.
5. Always leave interventions after asking if the volunteer understands the steps outlined, because if you don’t, that volunteer can easily say that he did not comprehend what was being discussed.
Interventions are usually enough to motivate a volunteer to succeed, especially if the volunteer is new (having a clear six month probationary period for all new volunteers helps too). But for the minute number of volunteers who do not improve, a “parting as friends” and a “wishing you well” is in order.
Without upfront, clear instruction and expectations, no manager can assume that volunteers know what is expected of them.
Rules, job descriptions, termination policies and the steps of intervention must be written and signed by each and every volunteer.
Infractions must be recorded and addressed immediately with volunteers.
Often, we view ourselves as too nice to point out egregious behavior. But really, we are not being too nice, we are just practicing confrontation avoidance.
Instead, the nice thing to do is to help a volunteer excel, not languish, unable to improve, isolated and ostracized by staff and peers.
The nice thing to do is to create an atmosphere of excellence, of lofty expectations, of volunteer quality so that your volunteers are proud to contribute and your clients are served by the very best.
Yes, I want to be tender and kind, and I will by being strong and resolute.
-Meridian
Ebony is in charge of a busy thrift store. The only staff member, Ebony manages sales, donations, store appearance, supply ordering, advertisement and the twenty volunteers who help her throughout the week. She has precious little time for drama or nonsense. Because her volunteers are a tight-knit team, when Bernice, a new volunteer signed up, Ebony placed her on the day the most welcoming volunteers worked. But a month later, those volunteers began to openly complain about Bernice’s attitude. Bernice had quit another resale shop volunteer position and was vocal about her perception that Ebony’s shop did not run as efficiently as her former store. Bernice complained about pricing, merchandising, advertising and lack of volunteer perks such as sizable discounts on merchandize.
Unused to volunteer conflict, Ebony had several heart to heart talks with Bernice and moved her to a different day. The complaints continued. Frustrated, Ebony hoped the volunteers would work things out, but her stalwart volunteers began to call out sick and take longer vacations. The once hard-working team became listless, negative and unproductive. Two volunteers quit, giving broad reasons. The other volunteers refused to fill in on the day Bernice worked. Ebony found her team crumbling. Too late she realized that one volunteer could destroy months and years of team building.
When do we pull the plug on a volunteer? How much trying to integrate one person is too much? This is a dilemma that we all face at some point in our careers. And while we may erroneously feel that we have failed if not every volunteer becomes successfully integrated, we have to weigh the time and effort spent working with a volunteer and their impact on other volunteers versus keeping someone just to keep them.
I remember a volunteer, Dot from my first years as a volunteer coordinator. She was a retired professional and not only belonged to many clubs and organizations but attained leadership roles in most. She was highly intelligent, but authoritarian and demanding. Her air of superiority was off-putting to volunteers and staff. I once complimented her on her outfit and she said, “I have a doctor’s appointment today and I want to make sure he is intimidated by me.” Everyone tiptoed around her because Dot put her own importance above the mission. Being new to volunteer management, I didn’t think we could dismiss Dot, but I asked. My senior managers were already afraid of what she might do, and sure enough, one day she went to the board of directors to threaten a volunteer walkout over a policy she disagreed with. Eventually the senior managers realized that something had to be done and she was let go. It was messy. She wrote a letter to the other volunteers imploring them to quit in solidarity, which thankfully, they did not.
What could Ebony or I have done to integrate Bernice and Dot? Did we miss something? Would spending more of our time have helped? Or is there a point when parting ways with a volunteer is the right thing to do? Can we stop blaming ourselves if occasionally, a volunteer does not work out no matter how hard we try?
The answer is yes, there is a point when the amount of work spent keeping a volunteer is incredibly lopsided against the benefit in having that volunteer. In weighing whether to continue to try to keep a problematic volunteer, you have to ask yourself these questions:
Do I spend more time on this volunteer than on any other?
Do I field more negative feedback about this volunteer than positive?
Do I find other good volunteers and staff refusing to work with this volunteer?
Do I find myself worrying what might go wrong when this volunteer is present?
Do I find myself bending rules and expectations in order to avoid confrontation with this volunteer?
But, hang on, before we can ask the questions above, we have to do some soul-searching of our own deep feelings on the matter to see if there are some personal perceptions that are keeping us unable to meet the challenge head on.
By being brutally honest with ourselves when working with problematic volunteers, we can move away from emotion based analysis and into logical resolution.
Am I petrified of confrontation even though I see there is no forward movement with this volunteer?
Am I afraid that I will just give in and not stick to my convictions?
Am I looking at this as a failure on my part?
Am I thinking that this will make me a mean person?
Am I clinging to my vision that volunteering is perfect? And that I must be perfect?
Am I just afraid of the unpleasantness of it all? Do I just want volunteering to be sunshine and kittens and not involve the hard stuff like requiring excellence and management?
The first set of questions refers to the problem at hand while the second set deals with our own emotions. And lets face it, we have feelings too. But, we can learn to acknowledge our feelings so as to view problematic volunteers in a logical and yet kind way. Sure, our stomach feels like the spin cycle of a washing machine when we are faced with unpleasant conversations, but just remember, by avoiding the issue, it only gets worse, not better. And besides, volunteer success or failure should never be about our feelings, but about the volunteer and the mission.
Next week, part two: FACE It: An acronym to remember when dealing with a challenging volunteer.
Willow, a new volunteer manager for a small organization providing aid to the homeless population in her town, answered her phone the day before Thanksgiving. She had spent long hours that week, organizing and recruiting volunteers to help prepare the annual meal held at a local high school auditorium. Exhausted, her brain overloaded, she tried to muster up enough energy to sound human on the incoming call.
The caller identified himself as Harry, the coach of a soccer team consisting of 15-year-old boys. “I’d like to get these boys involved in helping others,” he told Willow. “We’d like to come out and feed the homeless tomorrow.”
Willow felt a throbbing in her forehead. “How many players are we talking about?”
“Not the whole team, mind you, about 7 or 8.”
Tears filled her eyes like the bubbles in a natural spring. The volunteer slots were set in stone. It had taken every fiber of her new volunteer manager being to accomplish that. She was bone weary and wondered, why did this man wait until now to call? How could he think that there was no coordination in putting together something so incredibly complicated? Why does no one understand?
It’s happened to all of us. Often, people call at the last moment to help, especially at holiday times. After it happens, you begin to expect it and it is incredibly frustrating to have to tell a group of willing helpers that they are not needed because they procrastinated or called on a whim. They are, after all, potential volunteers. Granted, most might never volunteer again, but there’s always that little voice in our heads that sneers, “there goes a group that might just have been the greatest group of volunteers known to man. And you denied them. Tsk, tsk.”
So, what to do if you are not able to just dust off those last-minute potential holiday volunteers? If you feel that a part of your job is to give people the chance to experience the deep, satisfying joy in volunteering, then you will feel a twinge of guilt or sadness when having to refuse someone, even if they called too late. We all know that holidays bring out the desire to help and that each “drop in” volunteer might become an advocate for our organizations. Can we accommodate those late comers without making the holidays a nightmare for ourselves?
Yes, there is a way. It’s not perfect mind you, but it’s better than feeling overwhelmed and guilty at the same time. And it takes implementing now.
So that the future you is not caught in a holiday trap, prepare for the season right now. Before the holidays creep up on you, create some projects that last-minute folks can do. Don’t save the work that must be done but be ready with some extra projects that are off premises and not in direct contact with clients. (No background checks needed). You can invite these one time volunteers to become official volunteers at a later time.
Start now by asking everyone in your organization for fantasy projects. Ask, “If you had 3 or 5 or 10 volunteers over the holidays, what could they do?” Does marketing fantasize about hundreds of distributed holiday flyers? Does the thrift store secretly salivate over a huge deep cleaning and resorting for the season? Does finance have a tired office that cries for a fresh coat of paint? Is there a corner where an extra decorated tree would look lovely? Do you partner with other agencies and can you ask them if they have projects? I’ve always been able to find a nursing home that was extremely grateful for some extra help during the season.
You can also create your own meaningful projects. Go to social workers and ask if they have a family that needs Christmas presents because of financial need and then create a “gift tree” with the ages and sizes of family members on paper ornaments. Buying a gift for someone who is going through a tough time is a very satisfying introduction to volunteering. Don’t be afraid to create a project in which the participants will have to spend a bit of money. That never seems to matter.
One time volunteers can certainly write holiday cards and wishes to older clients or children. They can have a card writing party off premise. Ask a willing volunteer to attend to explain how much these cards mean to your clients. The point is to be creative. You know the difference between meaningless work and projects that can actually enhance the holidays. Have an extra tree to decorate, or paper place mats to color (good for youth groups to do). Ask your existing volunteers if they would be willing to mentor a group when necessary. Stock up on craft supplies now.
Then, when someone calls last-minute, instead of having to say, “sorry, but there’s nothing I can give you,” you can invite the late comers to get their feet wet by tackling a small but worthwhile project. If the latecomer says no, at least you offered something. I’ve had folks tell me that my organization was the only one who even tried to place them. That good feeling can translate to future volunteers.
You, by virtue of being a volunteer manager, take care of everyone around you. Take care of yourself this holiday season by preparing now for those inevitable 12th hour but sincere calls to help. Your future self will thank you.
This was a post from three years ago and I just wanted to update it:
I had an open house the other evening for folks who wanted to find out about volunteering in a “no strings attached” forum. You know the drill; people ask questions, hear other volunteers speak, see videos and generally get a feel for what it would be like to volunteer. I’m finding that those who are just a step away from crossing the volunteer threshold will come, have their questions answered and some of their fears allayed.
There were a good number of people, all asking “How much do time do you require” and “do I have to work directly with patients?” Amongst the crowd was one gentleman who stood out. He was young and dressed quite well, GQ actually. Most people come casual. He was very quiet. Most people ask questions and talk to one another. He sat and listened intently, more than most. What really made him stand out was his intense gaze. He had that look like he was waiting for a magic word or phrase that would free him from his hesitancy.
Open houses and orientations are great ways to get to know people you are going to manage. They talk about themselves, what they believe, and how they view the world. It gives me some sense of where they are in life and why they want to volunteer. Managing people without pay is hard enough, but not knowing why they are volunteering is just too difficult.
So, as I’m looking around the room, answering questions, getting a sense of everyone, I’m still at a loss with this young man who by his demeanor, seems to be out of place. And when you manage volunteers, it helps to have everything in place. Chaos is our world, so we appreciate some sort of control.
After a seasoned volunteer spoke of her experiences, I told a story to piggy back on her explanation of service. I told the group about another volunteer who simply offered a caregiver a cup of coffee. The caregiver who was sitting vigil at the bedside of her dying husband, had said with heartfelt appreciation, “No one has ever brought me a cup of coffee before.”
I wanted to expound on that idea, the age-old notion that one act can change everything, so I said to the group, “You never know when you will be the one at the very right moment to do the very right thing.”
At that, the young man became animated and spoke. He told the group that he worked in the corporate world and that he was responsible for keeping some very high profiled executives on schedule. He said that his world was very demanding, moved quickly and there was not much room for connection and gratitude. He simply ended with, “What you just said, that’s the feeling I want.”
Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh. While I believe that everyone possesses more than one reason to volunteer, there are always those who sometimes know their reasons, sometimes guess their reasons and sometimes can’t quite put their finger on why volunteering will be something worthwhile.
When I see that light bulb go off, I know then that I can help steer that person in the direction that hopefully will give him what he is seeking. Getting to know volunteers is a lengthy process. With this gentleman, the surface is only scratched. It will take trial and error to see where he “fits” and where he gets what he searches for. Don’t get me wrong, it will be interesting and I am looking forward to learning more about him and his journey.
Do we know volunteers well? I’d say we know them intimately, because we are nurturing their very beings. I’m curious and excited to know this person and curious and excited to see him receive what he came for.
Update: After a good amount of trial and error, he did settle into volunteering, so much so that he tells me he is keeping a journal about his experiences. He says he has found a balance between work and his desire to have “that feeling” and has brought both worlds together which has made him feel more whole.
My favorite patient at hospice was George. I don’t have any idea why. Maybe it was because he and I discussed sports comfortably. Maybe it was because he was so young and had a brain tumor and it was so darn unfair. Maybe it was because he would forget the name of the pitcher or linebacker or hockey center he was referencing, and then would remember the name the minute I left the room, so he would wheel out and shout down the hallway, “I remember, it was Stan Mikita!” Then the staff would shush him and I would chuckle, and give him a thumbs up. And maybe there’s just no reason why I felt so connected to him.
George was divorced and had a twelve year old daughter whom he saw infrequently. We talked about his inability to see her grow up. I would leave his room and cry but something made me go back every day. And when his daughter’s birthday approached, a couple of volunteers and I went out and bought presents so that George could give her something. The volunteers had fun wrapping those presents in pink and purple and gobs of glitter.
I still remember the day George’s daughter was planning to come and see him. I happened to be walking down the hall of the care center, and I peeked in to see if George needed anything else on this joyous occasion. Instead, I saw him sitting in bed, quietly crying, one of the presents at his side. I didn’t want to disturb him, so I looked in for a just a few seconds.
But in those intimate moments, the veil fell away and I saw the heavy shackles that bound him to us. The massive chains of our compassion tethered him to our desire to help and the heavy links now became visible through his pain.
Were his tears made of joy or sorrow? Did he cry from joy because we helped him or did he cry because he had lost control of everything precious and dear and was now dependent upon the kindness of strangers? Did he feel trapped, allowed to walk only as far as our chains would allow and only in the perimeter of our understanding?
Do the people we serve once in a while verbally strike out at us and can it be that they sometimes feel shackled to us? Is it kind of like the stranglehold the skydiving instructor has on the newbie skydiver who is strapped in tight and really is just a ride along on the way down? Does our tandem journey through folks’ lives sometimes strap them to our protective helping?
I went back to my office and closed the door and sat down. I wondered, in all our feel good desire to help, did we rob George of his last shred of dignity? Do we, sometimes in our exuberance, forget that a real person with complex feelings is on the end of that strap?
I continued to see George until he died. But after that day, I started to see him as more complex, more in charge and more mysterious. I could still see the shackles that bound him to us, but the volunteers and I discussed how to better serve his needs without strengthening the chain.
It’s true, the shackles were still there, but we tried our darnedest to make sure George had a key.
In the SpotlightI almost spit out my sip of coffee when I ran across this article a week ago. According to the story, a great grandmother was “sacked” from her nearly 30 year volunteer position at a thrift store for her inability to use a computer. The searing negative light this incident turned on made me cringe because as you can see from the selected comments I pasted below the link, non-profits all get lumped into the big barrel of rotten fish when a charity receives bad press.
JHR16 days ago
Charities are beginning to stink to high heaven.
ycjarman17 days ago
NEVER help a Charity that doesn’t appreciate what you bring to it !
JBJB116 days ago
Strikes me a lot of charities have lost sight of what they are supposed to be doing and more concerned in becoming corporate enterprises
I’m not jumping on the “get the pitchfork and storm the castle” bandwagon because as I read the article, I began to imagine the different scenarios that led to this unfortunate public airing of an incident involving a volunteer. What really happened? We don’t know, so I’ve put together some possible scenarios based on my own experiences with these types of circumstances.
1) An organization’s resale shop manager is just plain tired of “dealing” with volunteers who can’t work as efficiently as paid staff and so begins to find a convenient reason to dismiss those volunteers, never mind their years of service.
2) Volunteers become so entrenched in their jobs that no one has the guts to derail their authoritarian and entitled behavior and everyone kicks that can down the road until there is a blowup.
3) A volunteer becomes increasingly negative for any variety of reasons (health, circumstance, lack of being heard) and no one clears the air. This negativity builds and spreads until big problems arise.
4) Change is implemented without careful regard to how it will impact the volunteers. Lack of change awareness leads to grumbling, camp-forming and ultimately mutiny.
5) Repeated staff turnover leaves a new volunteer manager without any basic information about the volunteers he/she manages. Personality clashes balloon into showdowns with staff.
6) A shop manager/volunteer manager is burnt out, overworked and under appreciated, pressured to increase profit/sales and is unable to properly cultivate the shop’s volunteers.
This comment from a reader of the article hits at the perceived lack of volunteer management:
moanalisa16 days ago
it’s taken 30 years for them to ask Mrs Brooks to leave – if they were so concerned about Mrs Brooks attitude she should have been told to leave years ago
So, could this negative press have been prevented? Perhaps, but the point is, whether the volunteer is in the right or in the wrong, the proper handling of their exit is challenging but absolutely crucial, especially in the messiest situations. A curt dismissal letter is a weapon in the hand of the offended.
Sadly, we all are included in the negative stereotypes of charities as witnessed by the comment section of this article. The “pile-on” comments reinforces any perceived notion that “you know, I’m not so sure my local charity is really that nice. Last time I gave them a check, I never got a thank you. Maybe they’re just not who I thought they were.”
Our microscope is turned to a higher scrutiny than that of businesses. Why? Because the public perception is that charities are run by people who are nice. It’s a simple perception but one that takes a tremendous amount of attention to detail to continue. Who wrote the letter sent to the volunteer? Was it written out of frustration? Acting out of heightened emotions can get us splayed across media. For every 20 volunteers who perceive they are treated badly, one will go to the press or their circle of acquaintances. (And of course their acquaintances live next door to the CEO or the editor of the local newspaper)
So, what to do? You may never adequately resolve an issue with a volunteer and have to dismiss them. But, taking the extra time and effort to make the volunteer feel heard can go a long way in dousing the fire of their perception of being wronged. I’m not advocating the acceptance of poor behavior, I’m saying that hearing the volunteer’s side without your agreement or disagreement helps diffuse their anger.
If you’ve inherited a problem volunteer, it is much trickier. A volunteer whose problem behavior has been overlooked has assumed that the organization is fine with that behavior. It takes real skill to dismiss someone who looks at you as the evil newbie when in fact, you are just cleaning up the mess spilled on the floor years ago that now has mold growing on it. I’ve been in these situations and had hours long conversations with entrenched volunteers. Being respectful but firm, complimentary of their positive skill sets while pointing out negative behaviors and reiterating everyone’s commitment to the mission is helpful. While it took an enormous time and emotional commitment, the end result was always worth it. I never left the conversation until I felt that the volunteer and I were at a calm, reasonable point.
Having written conduct rules, including the steps for dismissal is critical. Every volunteer should sign a copy for their file. I’ve had to go back and look for that copy on several occasions and the presence of the volunteer’s signature on that document has saved me.
We all lose when folks reading a negative newspaper article generalize about every charity. Charities have to work harder to maintain the perception that we are ethical, caring, and committed to treating everyone, including volunteers respectfully.
But then, we signed up to be ethical, caring and committed to treating people respectfully, didn’t we?
-Meridian
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