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Tag: volunteer coordinator

Ever Want to Go Back in Time?
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You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, ‘I lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along’ …Eleanor Roosevelt

Ok, maybe we, volunteer managers don’t live through horror. (unless you consider that time when that group who asked for volunteer orientation had no AV equipment except an ancient TV so there was no way to show the super duper PowerPoint and then for four grueling hours you had to wing it…) But seriously, do you ever want to go back in time? Are there things you wish you had done differently? Me too.

If I could turn back the volunteer manager clock I would:
- Call that volunteer who had to quit because she got sick instead of telling myself that I would get around to calling her.
- Be more patient with that volunteer who had so many questions and even burst in on my annual job review.
- Not drive that volunteer home that one night. (cause it got real creepy……….. real fast).
- Stop that volunteer from talking to the press at that event (or at least tell the reporter our organization had no official position on the mayor’s race)
- Not tell that story in front of the CEO about running over a donor’s mailbox when I picked up a donation. (I ran it over with a truck-but I did pick up the letters from the street)
- Not get so frustrated with staff who were also overworked.
- Keep that volunteer from bringing in their special yummy, homemade tuna casserole, the one that made everyone sick. (I think it was tuna, but then again, it kinda had this weird smell)
- Explain volunteer management in better, more impactful ways.
- Listen to my inner voice and not let that teen volunteer bring her boyfriend in with her because….(well, I just turned my back for a minute, I swear!)
- Carve out more time for me to prioritize and progress.
- Not tell everyone in a meeting that I was going back to my home planet. (You had to be there and frankly, any planet except this one seemed better at the time)
- Not take a new volunteer to that house where they were engaging in a side business (hey, who knew?)
- Not accept that mysterious heavily taped up box at the thrift store…. (I don’t think the stains ever really came out of the carpet)
Sure, we’d all love to go back and make everything perfect, because I believe that we, volunteer managers tend to be perfectionists. (gasp, no, ya think?) We inwardly seek to create:
- the perfect volunteer experience for every volunteer.
- the perfect client experience so every client is satisfied.
- the perfect appreciation so every volunteer feels engaged.
- the perfect understanding so our work is valued.
- and for the above to be perfect, then we have to be perfect.
But if we were perfect, we wouldn’t learn, or grow or move forward. A cherished friend (yep, one of the volunteers-yeah, yeah, my perfect boundaries are not so perfect) told me that I should be thankful for the experiences that taught me something instead of bemoaning them. How else would I get better?

Volunteer management means every day, we have millions (ok, maybe hundreds) of interactions and experiences. Each and every one teaches us something we can use for the next. That is why our “jobs” are in reality, a continuous journey.

We all wish we could change some things, from having more patience with volunteers to standing up for ourselves in meetings. Past experiences can haunt us. Dwelling on them can prevent us from moving forward. There’s no shame in admitting, “hey, what I did there was far from perfect, but you know what? I’m learning and dang it, I’m getting better.”

Courageous leaders are not perfect. We’re not perfect. I think Mrs. Roosevelt nailed it all those years ago:

With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts…Eleanor Roosevelt

Anyone in volunteer management will tell you: I’m not the same person I was a year ago. No, I’m better. I’m smarter and stronger. And with each passing day full of experiences, I’m learning.”

So, when you wish you could go back and “fix” things, do this instead. Say to your past self, “thanks for teaching me. I’m a better volunteer manager today because of you.”

-Meridian
May 22, 2019
Volunteer Managers Are Better Than These 3 Phrases
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Words are pictures formed in the mind. The art of communication is drawing those word pictures so the other person sees things our way.

If we, volunteer managers want to change the perceptions of us, our work and our volunteers, we need to eliminate words and phrases that negatively picture us. We need to adopt communication that rewires the way people perceive us and our work.

Consider this conversation:
- Senior manager: “Where are you on getting those volunteers for tomorrow’s event?”
- Volunteer manager: “Well, I couldn’t get all five volunteers, but I did manage to get three.”
or this conversation:
- Staff member: “Were you able to place a volunteer with our client?”
- Volunteer manager: “I tried everyone but right now, no one is available. I’ll try again next week.”
or this one:
- Volunteer: “Were you able to get the answers to my questions?”
- Volunteer manager: “There’s a couple of people I still have to talk to and they are hard to pin down. I’m doing the best I can.”
I used these phrases all the time. They just naturally came out. So, what’s wrong with them?

Phrases like I can’t, I tried, and I’m doing the best I can, are apologies.

What are the natural reactions to these apologies?
- I can’t or couldn’t: “You let us down.”
- I tried: “You should have tried harder.”
- I’m doing the best I can: “You should do better.”
How many times have staff said things like, “Why don’t you just go down to the senior center and recruit those people?” Or “well, if you just put an ad in the paper, I’m sure folks would come.” Each time we say, “I couldn’t” or “I tried but,” we draw a picture that says: “I’m sorry, I failed.”

This does not mean shifting blame to anyone else, especially volunteers. It means don’t apologize, but rather answer in a positive and explanatory way. Let’s look at the first conversation again.
- Senior manager: “Where are you on getting those volunteers for tomorrow’s event?”
- Volunteer manager: “I have three of our best event volunteers lined up and ready to go. Two of them rearranged their schedules after I made clear the importance of the event. All other qualified volunteers explained they have prior commitments they cannot break. I have new orientation this month and we will have even more volunteers for future events.
A bit wordy? Yes, I’ll give you that. But communicating with non-apologetic positive explanations eliminates the notion that the volunteer manager can’t get the job done.

Structure your non-apologetic communication to include three things:

Always use “I” with the positives:
- “I have three of our best event volunteers lined up.”
- “…after I made clear the importance of the event.”
- “I have new orientation this month.”
Explain the work being done:
- “All other qualified volunteers explained they have prior commitments.” (It’s obvious you contacted all the volunteers)
- “…after I made clear the importance of the event” (shows the amount of work you did with each volunteer)
Reasons:
- “All other qualified volunteers explained they have prior commitments they cannot break.”
- “…we will have even more volunteers for future events.” (not enough volunteers to choose from at this point in time)
Rewiring people’s perceptions of us and our work is never easy, but with a shift away from apologetic responses (emphasis on the personal) to professional communication (emphasis on the work–positives, explanations, reasons) we can uplift ourselves and therefore, our programs.

So, rethink the ways you communicate information and save your apologies for the times you actually do something wrong.

-Meridian
May 15, 2019
New Volunteer Management Dictionary Words for 2019

This year, the “Committee to Define Volunteer Management” met a week late because they had forgotten to set up a meeting room and so they got together one night at Big Al’s truck stop off Route 37. Feeling like they should come prepared for once, each committee member conducted an impromptu survey of all the volunteer managers they knew in an attempt to write a statement that “encapsulates the essence of volunteer management” (Their words, not mine).

Most of the volunteer managers on their list had either become real estate agents, yoga instructors or fugitives. One former director of volunteers went to live in the woods as witnessed by her angry father who pleaded on the phone call, “What have you people done to her?”

There was one volunteer manager still at his job and he reluctantly gave his statement on the essence of volunteer management, but sadly it can’t be published in family-friendly company.

And, after several hours downing “the trucker’s special,” the committee threw away their stream-of-consciousness statement because when reading it back, even they couldn’t understand it, but they did chuckle at all the references to pack mules.

As usual, the committee deferred to their second item on the agenda, which was adding new words to the volunteer management dictionary. In no particular semblance of order or reality, here are the words they included this year:

Volisms: Those cute words or phrases used to describe volunteers in overly sweet terms like “volunteers give from their hearts,” or “that extra layer of caring,” as in, “While I appreciate the sugar rush and future cavities from all your volisms, let me tell you about the meaningful contributions our volunteers are making to our programs.”

Re-snacking: All the left-over snacks from board meetings, senior management birthday parties and donor functions that are given to the volunteer manager to share at the volunteer orientation class as in, “Thank you so much for the half-eaten cake I’ll just cut off the sides, form it into a heart and cover it with sprinkles. I can trim the brown spots off the fruit and maybe scrape the tuna salad from the finger sandwiches to make a pate’. Always appreciate re-snacking and besides, the volunteers never complain, they’re just mindless little extra layers of caring!”

N.A.R.vol: That unicorn type volunteer who comes No Assembly Required as in, “While I appreciate your belief that any warm body will do and our volunteers just magically know all our policies because somehow when they apply to be a volunteer, poof! All the training and knowledge they need just flies into their heads and all I do is just stand back and marvel at the miracle before me! However, I won’t send in a volunteer who has not been properly vetted and trained. Just as we thoroughly screen and train staff, we must thoughtfully develop our volunteers to succeed so I’m sorry, the N.A.R.vol doesn’t exist.”

Studget: The volunteer department budget stuck in a no-increase mode although requests for volunteer help has risen as in, “I know we need to add more volunteers and I have amazing ideas for furthering our mission. In order to do so, I need to increase our budget to provide more training and resources. So yeah, maybe next year we will have the funds necessary, because this year I’m working from our studget. For now, I’ll just do more re-snacking. Do you know whose leftover sandwich that is in the fridge? I’ve got a volunteer meeting this afternoon.”

Volunteptionist: When the volunteer manager is expected to always fill in for office staff when they are at lunch or on holiday because what else does the volunteer manager do besides chat and have tea parties, duh, as in “Sigh, sure I’ll stay here and monitor the phones but I’ll have to cancel the training at the University which means we won’t be getting help from those amazing students who are passionate about our cause. And by the way, why didn’t you ask me for a highly qualified volunteer to fill in? We have them, you know. Our volunteers not only give from the heart, they give from the brain too! No, you think it’s better that I be the volunteptionist than actually do my job. And, sure, I’ll clean up after the senior management lunch meeting. Yes, I know there’s leftover potato salad.”

Open-world requests: Requests for volunteers in which the requesting person thinks they can roam freely like Steve in Minecraft, killing zombies and randomly changing the number of requested volunteers, the objectives, the time-frames or any other aspect at will. They think the volunteer department is a sandbox as in, “So if I’m hearing you correctly, you now need 5 more volunteers and they must be there tomorrow 2 hours earlier, right? Oh, I know you think our volunteers are endless tools like diamond swords or blocks of oak and we just pick the ones we need in creative mode, but I can’t promise you all these changes. Believe it or not, our volunteers are human beings and are not in never-ending supply so we can’t do open-world requests. This is the real world and we’re in survival mode.”

Exploiteers: Volunteers who are celebrated, not for their volunteering, but for their potential donations or for whom they know as in, “Yes, volunteer Sal’s brother is that famous movie star. Did you know that Sal was the one who braved the storm when staff was at home so those families could get the supplies they needed? If Sal wants to ask his brother to endorse us, I’m sure he will do so on his time. And, what? What are you asking? How much money did Sal’s brother make from his last movie? Please, let’s not turn Sal into an exploiteer.”

The 364: The rest of the year, you know, those days when volunteers are not given an appreciation luncheon. Also known as the 51 if volunteers are celebrated for a week. It points to the chasm between lip service appreciation (cake and balloons at a lovely 3 star hotel banquet room) and year-round appreciation (whole organizational buy-in everyday) as in, “Yes, last years’ leftover donor lanyards might make a nice table gift for our volunteer luncheon, but you know what says we appreciate volunteers so much more? Our volunteers want to know they have made meaningful contributions to our organization. So, save your leftover ‘Fund Development is Fun, 2018’ lanyards and let’s work on the 364. Allow me to set up a true year-round appreciation program, because the encouragement we show all year is what keeps volunteers coming back. Then, our once a year luncheon is the culmination of our year-round volunteer engagement. And oh, by the way, we need to talk about the studget.”

Well, there you have it, the new words added to the Volunteer Management Dictionary for 2019. The committee has asked that any questions or complaints be filed in the circular file.

For previous years’ words see:

New words 2018.
New words 2017.

or, for all of the words, the new Volunteer Management Dictionary page.

Thanks to the Committee to Define Volunteer Management for all their hard work in once again not being able to define volunteer management.

But, appreciate the new words.

-Meridian

May 8, 2019
Volunteer Reviews: Our Overlooked BFF
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I don’t know about you, but when I travel, I tend to pick local restaurants based on reviews. I get a sense of what to expect from reading the accounts of people who have eaten there. Does a restaurant serve great regional food? How much will I have to pay? Is the service friendly?

So, are organizations kinda like restaurants? Do volunteers learn anything from volunteer reviews? What good are reviews anyway? In searching for volunteer opportunities, reviews are personal endorsements from people who have experienced volunteering firsthand. The reviewers have already been through the first assignment, the training, the fitting in. They’ve done the work.

And here’s the bonus. Reviews immediately answer the common questions potential volunteers have:
1. will I find something meaningful to do?
2. will they respect my time and talents?
3. will I like it?
4. how will they prepare me?
Consider these actual reviews on VolunteerMatch:

“(Organization name) is a magical place. It is a family style community where everyone gets the opportunity to participate and work together in the many fun activities and craft workshops. I had the greatest joy meeting new people.”

“I feel as if I’m a part of something that is really making a difference. I’m glad a program like this exists. They treat their volunteers very well.”

I’d definitely give those organizations a second look. Now imagine if there were 10 or 15 reviews that painted your organization in a positive light. How many more hesitant people would contact you based on 10 good reviews that answer their initial questions?

Besides reviews, there are testimonials, recommendations and endorsements: No matter what you call them, they serve a purpose in encouraging potential volunteers to try volunteering.

Don’t just ask volunteers to submit a review. That’s too vague and most won’t bother. Go mining for testimonials. Explain to volunteers how important it is for potential volunteers to have their fears allayed. Don’t put words in the volunteers’ mouths, but help them frame their thoughts by suggesting areas to talk about. Again, think of questions potential volunteers might have.

I created a volunteer recruitment brochure filled with volunteer testimonials that each tackled a different area. One recommendation spoke of how valuable the training was. Another endorsement talked about how specialized skills were utilized. Still another lauded the flexible schedule. Each recommendation answered a potential question with actual volunteer words instead of corporate blather.

Just as great volunteer recruitment ads work night and day for us, volunteer reviews also produce with the added benefit of answering the upfront questions that might keep potential volunteers from following through.

Put reviews on your website. Encourage volunteers to share on social media. The more chat from actual volunteers in their own words, the more prospective volunteers will feel comfortable with your organization. They will feel as though they already know the existing volunteers, which is an incentive to join.

More reviews mean diverse opinions and more areas covered. More volunteer reviewers mean similar messages are worded differently. This increases the chances that the wording in one of those messages will resonate with someone who is contemplating joining your volunteer team.

Consider organization A with one review, albeit a good one.
- “It is a great place to work. I love it here.”
Now consider organization B:
- “I can come in when I have extra time.”
- “I got the training I needed.”
- “We all look forward to seeing one another. It’s like family.”
- “I go home knowing I’m really helping.”
- “I’ve learned so much.”
Organization B’s reviews answer more initial questions, don’t they? Again, don’t write reviews for volunteers or give them a script. Their own words (and not the ones crafted by us) will speak volumes to potential volunteers. Ask volunteers unbiased, open questions like, “What would you say about our training? Your first day here? Your role?”

I often asked volunteers to come and speak at open houses or presentations or training sessions. I would stand back and give them an uninterrupted platform to speak.

Sometimes I would cringe at what they shared and want to step in but I stopped myself. Why? Because their honest accounting did more to encourage prospective volunteers than my carefully worded talks. After all, it was my job to paint volunteering in a positive light. An added bonus was my standing back accomplished two things:
1. It showed how much we respected our volunteers’ opinions.
2. It gave prospective volunteers a chance to ask questions and learn what volunteering was like from a peer’s perspective.
How important are reviews? Picture a potential volunteer who wants to get involved, late at night, sitting in bed, scrolling through websites or volunteer ads, feeling a little overwhelmed and shy. They chance upon your ad and read through the reviews by your volunteers. One of your volunteer reviewer states, “I didn’t know what to expect but I was instantly made to feel welcomed.”

All of our carefully worded recruitment ads describing volunteer duties and all the adjectives we use to describe the volunteers we want like “enthused” or “flexible” do not answer the questions potential volunteers have.

Think again about that potential volunteer, late at night, scrolling through ads. There was just one question that potential volunteer had, a question that kept them from following through. But then, they chanced upon the above review by your volunteer. Your volunteer answered their question: Will I be made to feel welcomed?

Now picture that same potential volunteer. Because their initial question was answered in a review, they follow through and contact you.

-Meridian
May 1, 2019
Those Adjectives That Turn Off Prospective Volunteers
Everywhere you see Volunteer Recruitment Ads that begin with “Energetic Volunteer Wanted.” Or “Caring volunteer.” Or even “Friendly volunteer.” Maybe “Enthusiastic,” “Flexible,” or “Compassionate” appears. But does “Detail Oriented” float your boat? Does “Organized volunteer” send you running in to help sort an organization out of their accounting mess?

The point is, how can a volunteer be enthusiastic about a role they have not yet undertaken? And what does flexible indicate? That a volunteer will be called at 3 am? Or that they have to drive 50 miles just to participate?

What about caring? How much can a volunteer already care about people they have not met?

What does energetic mean anyway? That a volunteer will have to run back and forth at an event, carrying 30 pound boxes of give-aways?

The World War II generation responded to these adjectives. They were after all, people who believed in humble service and assumed that they had to fit in with an organization, not vice versa. Today’s volunteers view things differently and our recruitment ads need to reflect a more updated approach.

In place of asking for vague qualifications, our volunteer recruitment ads need to spell out who we are and what the volunteer will gain by giving us their precious time. What impact will their donated time have on the mission? What personal benefit will they gain by joining the cause? Why should they bother with us at all?

Our volunteer ads are potentially our most potent recruitment tool. They are passive recruitment which means they are working when we are out talking to potential volunteer groups, while we are training new volunteers and even while we are sleeping. Recruitment ads are a way to encapsulate all the positive aspects of volunteering for our organizations and they have only a moment to speak to volunteers who are scrolling for something that sparks their interest.

Try to look at it from the prospective volunteer’s point of view. Imagine this volunteer late at night, looking at volunteer ads, wondering what they can do to make a difference. They know nothing about your organization. If you had 10 seconds, what would you tell them to make them respond?

Recruitment ads are elevator pitches and most of us write them aimed at what kind of volunteer we are looking for instead of aiming at what the volunteer is looking for from us. I know because I didn’t give ads much thought at the beginning either. Then I started to ask prospective volunteers how they heard about the organization and what made them take that first step. I found that recruitment ads needed to go way beyond a description of the job. They needed to have appeal.

By flipping our ads to reflect what we offer, we will entice volunteers to contact us. Positives to include in ads:
- Quotes from actual volunteers: Example: “I am made to feel that my contributions are important.”
- Flexibility of assignments: Ex: Volunteer when your schedule allows.
- Any trial periods or the message that you don’t judge people who don’t find a suitable fit: Ex: “Give us a try to see if we’re worthy.
- Statistical impact: Ex: Our volunteers helped 750 people find housing last year.
- Quotes from clients: Ex: “My volunteer helped me to…”
- Humor or lighthearted messages or it’s not all doom and gloom: Ex: Do you get all giddy over other people’s junk?
- Humanizing messages or we’re also new to this and we welcome you: Ex: We would love your help in creating new programs to…
- Craft a tagline: (I love taglines…just saying) Ex: Where passion meets purpose.
Photo by Artem Bali on Pexels.com

Volunteer recruitment ads are like having a personal robot assistant helping you. It never sleeps. It never stops. Program it wisely and it will work tirelessly. But a robot needs a tune-up once in a while just as our recruitment ads need updating so check yours to see if they sound fresh.

For more really great tips on volunteer recruitment, see this post by Eileen at Volunteering Counts: A Volunteer’s eye view of recruitment.

Today’s volunteers respond to modern recruitment ads. They need to be shown the reasons why they want to volunteer. So, if your volunteer wanted ad says, “Flexible, energetic and obedient volunteers needed to support our work. One year commitment required or you need not apply. Background check a must! Copy this number to your flip phone and download our application to your floppy disc,”……..

…you might want to rewrite that one.

-Meridian
April 24, 2019
The 5 Stages of Volunteer Management

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For those of you new to volunteer management, you must be wondering, what does the future hold? Will I change the world? Will my office be overrun with mewing kittens wearing panda costumes?

There are actually 5 well researched volunteer management stages as referenced by the “We Squeeze Everything into 5 Stages” Institute. The Institute is famous for ground breaking studies such as “the 5 stages of falling down” and “the 5 stages of a stage.”

In this particular study, the institute interviewed two former volunteer managers and came up with their findings. One of the interviewees, Kevin, now works in real estate and the other, Imelda, now lives in a tent on Redondo Beach. From the quick phone interview, the institute found that each volunteer management stage has its own set of questions or comments as recorded from the former volunteer managers. The 5 stages are:

1. Denial:

Kevin:”I can’t believe they gave me a stapler that won’t work on packets of more than 4 pages.”

Imelda: ” Who wrote this volunteer recruitment ad for caring hearts, strong stomachs?”

2. Anger:

Kevin: “If you won’t call the new volunteer that I just spent a week training, then stop asking for volunteers if you don’t really have time for them.”

Imelda: “BTW, why is the budget for volunteer recruitment only $59 a year while the senior manager “take special care of yourself because you matter” retreat cost hundreds?”

3. Bargaining:

Kevin: “Look, I’ll take your nephew, who has to do 125 supervised community service hours if you will just come and speak at our next volunteer meeting. Ok, even if you only answer questions. Ok, just 3 questions.”

Imelda: “Hey universe, if I let volunteer Big Dan write a country song for our luncheon this year, can we at least not serve chicken again?”

4. Depression:

Kevin: “Yeah, I know, you’ve already told me many times that if I would just go out and recruit the Dowager’s Tea Sippers Guild, I would get all the help we need.”

Imelda: “Here comes volunteer Andi with that look in her eye and she’s going to tell me all about the complications from her gall bladder surgery again.”

5. Acceptance:

Kevin: “My volunteer coordinator peer group meeting is next week…I can survive until then. I wonder if any of them have the contact person for the Dowager’s Tea Sippers Guild?”

Imelda: “I had no idea that there was so much flatulence after gall bladder surgery. Boy, you learn something new everyday.”

Well, there you have it. I wish this was more scientific, but you can’t argue with an Institute.

What volunteer management stage are you in?

-Meridian

April 3, 2019
Would You Choose Raw or Developed Volunteers?
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Fill in the blanks if you’ve heard these questions/comment:

“Why don’t we have enough volunteers to __________?”

“How hard can it be to find people willing to ___________?”

“Have you tried targeted recruiting for ____________?”

“There must be lots of retired ____________ who would love to use their talents to help us.”

In response, you may try to “educate” the other person with all the knowledge you’ve accumulated over time and say something about motivations, or retention rates or even the fact that staff in one particular department never follows up with volunteers.

Or maybe you tell them that yes, there are volunteers who are being vetted and please can they wait while you spend a bit of time making sure you’re not turning ax murderers loose on our client base.

If organizations are still of the mindset that anyone who inquires about volunteering is already a mini Gandhi and possesses this vast knowledge of organizational policies, then every warm body will do just fine.

Because well, warm bodies are at least bodies, or numbers or a check mark on our statistical worksheet. But since when, in volunteer management, is hasty quantity preferred to in-depth quality?

The more important the volunteer role, the more up front work is required in order to place adequately developed volunteers. Proper vetting, orientation and training takes time and effort by discriminating volunteer managers.

Sure, warm bodies can fill slots, but cold, hard facts say that warm bodies ultimately:

Leave abruptly, usually within the first three months.

Do not bring their best.

Do not gel with the organization and remain on the outside.

Can do irreparable harm to clients.

Cost more in terms of time and money to replace.

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 until we educate our respective organizations on the importance of developing volunteers prior to placement.

When pressured by anyone to produce more bodies, point to the lack of harmful behavior (incident reports) by your competent volunteers. Remind staff that properly vetted and trained volunteers do not damage the very people we serve. Properly vetted and trained volunteers need an investment of time and skill upfront from a knowledgeable supervisor (You).

Weeding through harmful behavior (even if it’s not the volunteer’s fault because they were placed into a role they were not trained to handle) after the fact takes productive time away from our duties. It takes less time to provide properly developed volunteers from the beginning.

How do we show the importance of developing volunteers?

Create a survey for volunteers to fill out after proper training that shows what they have learned and include areas such as:
- Proper ways to handle sensitive situations
- The importance of confidentiality
- The steps taken when faced with challenges
- The crucial role of diversity
- Boundaries
These after training questionnaires will give you solid proof that your attention to developing people produces volunteers who are valuable assets.

And after one of your developed volunteers recounts a story in which your careful training played a role in the volunteer’s success, record it. That story is additional proof that there is a need to spend upfront time with potential volunteers.

And, finally, when someone uses the above fill-in-the-blank statements, ask them this question: “Would you want a hastily recruited and insufficiently trained volunteer working with your mother, father or child?”

Neither would our clients.

-Meridian

this post first appeared as Warm Bodies, Cold Hard Facts
March 27, 2019
8 Ways to a Good Volunteer Manager Poker Face

courtesy https://gratisography.com/

Yes, it’s true. We, volunteer managers cannot maintain a neutral expression when we hear a staff member tell a volunteer, “thanks for offering to help sweetie, but this is complicated.”

I can’t begin to count the number of times I’d catch someone watching my face during a meeting when a manager would be speaking and I’d be thinking, “yeah, our volunteer Andre told me you call volunteers ‘window dressing’.”

People would say to me, “ha, you have no poker face,” to which I’d scrunch up my nose and very cleverly respond, “oh yeah?” But they were right. I mean, how can we, volunteer managers actually keep a poker face when all those thoughts are rattling around inside our heads like “WHAT THE HECK IS A PARADIGM SHIFT ANYWAY?”

So, before you can’t stop yourself from busting out laughing when your supervisor says, “I think the volunteers will love our luncheon theme this year: Volunteers are the sprinkles atop our cupcake of caring,” here are my top volunteer manager poker face ideas:

Botox: Personally, I can’t afford Botox so I just slather my face with egg whites (please note-some skin cannot tolerate egg whites, so be careful and I always use organic eggs because I figure my face is organic). You are supposed to wash the egg whites off, but heck, I just leave them on because my face is then frozen into this super shiny mask which is great because it also scares people away and then, well, problem solved.

Argue that it’s opposite day: This one is sooooo easy it’s almost criminal. Anytime you feel yourself giving the “stink eye” to the person who just suggested that “we can enlist volunteers to do the cleanup,” just break into a smile and claim, “it’s opposite day, right? Didn’t you get that memo?”

Look around at the confused faces and say, “so you really meant that staff should do the cleanup, am I right?” (the only problem here is, every time you laugh at something that day, you’ll have to start crying. You’ll probably be forced to see one of the counselors, but that’s when you throw the receptionist under the bus and say that she was the one who told you it was opposite day or maybe she said optimist, who knows).

Enroll in a drama class or at least pretend to: Walk around spouting monologues with exaggerated expressions and claim you are practicing for an upcoming audition at your local community theater’s production of A Streetcar Named Desire. (Bonus points if you proclaim, “I’m not just interested in performing, I want to recruit volunteers while I’m there, because well, method actors make great volunteers, don’t you agree?”) When you are caught rolling your eyes in the next meeting, say, “wow that made me think of Blanche Dubois when Stanley yells S-t-e-l-l-a!”

Create a mantra in your head: If you can silently repeat a mantra over and over, it settles the muscles in your face. You look glassy-eyed and creepy (especially if you have egg whites on your face), but hey, at least you’re not scowling. My mantra was always, “don’t take yourself too seriously, cause they don’t, don’t take yourself too seriously, cause they don’t.” Point to your third eye and announce, “I may look like I don’t see you, but I do.”

Fake choking: When you feel your eyebrows rising, start to cough and then fake like you just swallowed your own spit. Bend over and get your face out of view. Someone may try the Heimlich maneuver on you, but a few bruised ribs are a small price to pay (I used to just tape my ribs up and the bonus here was I didn’t have to wear my Spanx shapers those days). Yell, “ow, ow, you’re hurting me,” so that your expression looks like you are in pain and then demand some personal leave time to recover.

Breathe in and pretend there’s a putrid smell: When you notice that tick in your eyelid pulsating, wrinkle up your nose and whip your head back and forth, saying, “do you smell that? Ewwwwww.” (Bonus here is if the person who just said to you, “hey your volunteer was late today,” thinks they are the one who smells, so look directly at them and hold your nose).

Wear headphones: Yes, I know that you are not supposed to wear headphones all the time, but I’d wear one ear bud and let the other dangle down. I’d put little penguin charms on the dangling earbud so it looked like a necklace. Then, when you make that tsk tsk face, burst into laughter and claim you were just listening to a motivational speech (Bonus here is when you then add, “I laughed at the absurdity of the speech, because I realized, working here needs no motivation!” Then rip the remaining ear bud from your ear and don’t forget to pick up all the penguin charms that probably flew off the other earbud and hit a few people).

Do face yoga or face exercises while in meetings: Tell everyone that you are doing facial exercises to improve the muscle tone in your face. It doesn’t hurt if you add that it’s a proven method to lose weight or you can just say that you are entering the Non-Profit Facial Olympics in 2020 and your event is holding a laser pointer between your upper lip and nose while explaining a PowerPoint graph. Be sure to add some grunts or whooshes with your exercises to give it plausibility, sort of like Maria Sharapova when she hits a forehand.

Well, there you have it. Worry no more about your lack of poker face, because any one of these methods should keep you out of trouble. You might get labeled as off your rocker, but hey, at least you’re not negative which we all know is the worst label ever you can have in a non-profit.

So, my friends, don’t get caught being negative. Just be quirky.

You are so welcome.

-Meridian

March 20, 2019
When a Volunteer is “Ok,” But Not Ok

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I have this friend who prides herself on “being ok” with adjusting to whatever the situation presents. However, at the same time, she makes side comments about having to adapt or being uncomfortable. So, I’m confused. Is she ok or is she not?

It makes me think of certain volunteers I’ve known who do the same thing. “Oh, that’s fine,” they’ll say or “no problem,” when in fact, it isn’t fine and it is a problem. And here’s the thing with these confusing messages. The people who tell you they’re ok when they’re really not believe that they are making it easier on you, when in fact, they are making it way harder, because here you are, spending mental and emotional energy trying to figure out what they need through the cryptic verbal and body language clues they give.

When you ask them to be honest, they brush it off, saying, “it’s no big deal.” But you know better. So, what can we do with these volunteers? Banish them from our programs? Continue to play a part in their game of emotional hide and seek?

For what it’s worth, I’ve developed a few methods over the years when dealing with the “I’m ok, but really I’m not” messaging. They are:

Be direct by addressing the verbal or body language clues: Say to your volunteer, “I appreciate you telling me that you are fine with the change in assignment, but I’m sensing from your comments (or body language or tone) that you’re not fine and that’s ok. I want to make sure we address your concerns because you are vitally important to us and you play a huge part in how we achieve our goal.”

Lay out your ability to spot clues up front: Tell volunteers in training or meetings that it is your job to observe them. Make it funny if you like, but get the point across that you (maybe you say it’s a curse) can spot bulls#$@ a mile away from years of working with people. You can make it fun by calling it your fib o’meter or something similar. Tell them you will call them out and then jokingly yell, “The fib o’meter says you are not ok!” Everyone will laugh, but the point is made.

Then add the serious element. Let volunteers know that it is your job to make sure they are giving their time free of annoyances, because their experiences should enhance their lives, not complicate them. And, volunteering by grudging acquiescence doesn’t help anyone, themselves included.

Check up on them: Ask questions. Ask clients, other volunteers and staff. Checking in to see how volunteers are faring is part of our job. If you hear that “volunteer Jules is complaining all the time,” then by all means, address it. Job satisfaction is a key component to not only volunteer sustainability, but also key to bringing a volunteer’s best work which is what we want our clients to have.

Enlist staff: Enlighten them on the effects of changing volunteer assignments or time-frames or requirements. Let them know that changing or canceling an assignment at the last moment creates volunteer acquiescence which leads to volunteer fatigue which leads to volunteer burnout.

Make it clear that this behavior is unproductive: If you’ve had multiple conversations and the behavior is affecting job performance, then you have to weigh whether this volunteer is irreplaceable and whether you have to accept any and all behaviors. But also look at the ripple effect. How does this behavior affect other volunteers? What message does the acceptance of negative behavior send to your team?

I vividly remember this one volunteer when I managed a thrift store. Our team was pretty happy most of the time and this new volunteer came in and complained continuously to the other volunteers but told me that “everything was fine.” The team’s mood shifted.

One day, I just couldn’t take any more “I’m fine” talk. It wasn’t so much that this volunteer annoyed me, it was the fact that she was destroying the volunteer team’s productive balance. So, I took her aside and pointedly asked, “are you happy here?”

To my surprise, she hesitated and then said, “not really,” and told me she thought the store was poorly run and the other volunteers were incompetent. I said, “then I don’t think you should be in a place that makes you this unhappy.” I didn’t fire her; I gave her my opinion that she should take the steps to quit and she did. On the spot.

From simply being accomodating to acquiescence to out-and-out hiding displeasure, there are many levels of volunteer flexibility. It falls upon us to determine when flexibility turns into grudging compliance and burnout. The more (with kindness) direct we are with volunteers, the closer we get to their motivations and true satisfaction.

And ultimately by investigating the emotions behind the words, we acheive that intersection between volunteer sustainability and mission transformative work. It’s the place where volunteers give of their time and talents freely, a place where volunteers get back the intangible rewards that fill them with joy and a place where the volunteers’ contributions have a profound effect.

It’s a magical place where everyone wins.

-Meridian

March 13, 2019
Volunteer Management Chess

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Do you ever dream you’re playing a game of chess and your volunteers are (wait, you were going to say the pawns, weren’t you-I see where you’re going with this) the pieces? You murmur, “still think our volunteers are sweet,” as you dream you’re capturing the king with your mighty diverse volunteers.

Maybe some volunteers are the knights and others are the bishops and the office volunteers are the rooks. Do you ever lie awake at night and plot your next move? I’m guessing probably not, but let’s ask this question. Should strategy play a part in managing a volunteer initiative?

Well, only if you have a vision for your volunteers. And I’ll bet you do.

We all say things like, “I wish people understood how important volunteers are,” or “I want staff to recognize volunteers on a par with donors,” or “I wish volunteers were treated with more respect and given more meaningful roles.” Aha, you know what? There’s a vision lurking in each of those statements.

Strategy is comprised of the calculated moves that bring you closer to your vision. When we, volunteer managers have unfulfilled visions, we can end up running around in chaos wondering why things are the way they are. Visions are what we strive to accomplish. Strategies focus on how we get there.

Imagine your vision coming true. The first step in seeing your vision materialize is to formulate a strategy. Picture yourself as this genius chess player who skillfully moves each piece with an end game in mind. Each move brings you closer to capturing that elusive goal.

Let’s say your vision is for your organization to utilize volunteer skills in better ways. A tech firm has contacted you and offered pro-bono services. Your organization is hesitant to let these folks into the inner sanctum (they are outsiders) (see Resting on Nonprofit Laurels) so your immediate supervisor says, “Let them do some data entry in finance.”

“No,” your thoughts race in your mind. “Here’s an opportunity to engage some volunteers who bring expert help. Have you actually looked at our website lately?”

Now you could simply offer the tech firm the data entry, knowing that they are capable of doing so much more or you can see them as important pieces in your strategy. What concrete and measurable tactics can I employ with this tech firm to show my organization that engaging volunteer skills is beneficial?

So, you move your pawn and ask them to do minimal data entry to get them in. But then, you move the knight by devising a way to show the benefits this tech firm brings. You ask the firm to do a social media analysis for you. They work up a sample social media campaign that would benefit your organization.

You move your bishop by testing the social media campaign on your volunteers and their friends who overwhelmingly give it positive feedback. You move your rook by reporting to senior management that data entry is going well and the firm is helping reduce the amount of late data by 30%.

And then it’s time to move the queen. You tell senior management that the tech firm is honored to be working with your organization and would love to help further. That’s when you present the compelling statistics on the sample campaign and explain the small to large steps the tech firm is willing to do.

Pawns are the simpler things we sacrifice (like agreeing to ask corporate volunteers to do data entry in the above example) in order to move your vision forward. Your real power lies in strategizing your other, more powerful pieces such as impact reports, feedback, influences and outcomes.

When you create a vision and focus on a strategy, your tactics will fall into place. How do I get to where I want to be? It’s important that we have visions for our volunteer initiatives because it makes us work hard towards elevating our volunteers instead of just working hard.

Strategy has an important place in our profession. The next time you wish something would change, envision it changing. Then focus on creating a strategy to capture it with carefully calculated moves.

Checkmate.

-Meridian

March 6, 2019