In modern society, many children are attracted to jobs that promise to be lucrative, not altruistic, and as a result, many working adults can end up feeling underappreciated. Whilst many schools offer voluntary work experiences, it’s not often that young people find out all the aspects of working in the nonprofit sector.
Despite this, jobs in this sector are incredibly rewarding and allow people to feel beneficial, not only to their co-workers but to the improvement of their society.
There are many benefits to working for a local charity such as ours, and we would strongly encourage more people to seek opportunities with us and other nearby charities. In this blog we have interviewed Olivia, who has been working with us for the last three months, to get some insight into how she feels working for a local charity
Fulfilment
One of the best parts about working for a local charity is the feeling of accomplishment. Unlike other careers, working for local charities is incredibly rewarding and offers lots of opportunities to benefit your own community. This can lead to an improvement in your wellbeing as you can witness firsthand the opportunities you have helped to create. When asked, Olivia expressed how: “At Cambridgeshire Peterborough and South Lincolnshire (CPSL) Mind, everyone is very supportive, and you get a sense that you are really making a difference to people’s lives in your local area. When you are working for a charity that represents a cause close to your heart, it feels fantastic!” We at CPSL Mind, have created many crucial campaigns and between 2022 and 2023 helped to support more than 4,800 people. These positive initiatives are extremely valuable to our society and being able to help those who are struggling is incredibly gratifying.
Varying Opportunities
Working for a local charity requires lots of different skills and offers plenty of different opportunities. Olivia described how she: “really enjoys working on different projects as it adds variety to the day, and you have the opportunity to learn new skills and work collaboratively with colleagues across departments.” Within charities, jobs can range from helping people in the community by working as part of the services team, providing vital information and advice via the support and enquiries telephone line, running social media platforms to marketing. There are many opportunities to interact with the community by fundraising, in the form events such as sponsored marathons or charity football competitions. This gives you the ability to be creative and allows you to invent new initiatives that will benefit local people.
Community
Working in the nonprofit sector creates a sense of community both with local people and within the workplace. Unlike other jobs, when working for a local charity there is no competition with your peers, instead you are all working together to change the world around you. In a job that is dedicated to improving the wellbeing of others, many of your co-workers are likely to share your own values. When asked what makes her job stand out from other careers Olivia replied: “Everyone in the organisation is approachable and friendly, regardless of their position.” Being empathetic and altruistic are important characteristics for this job and so many of your colleagues are likely to share these qualities.
I am currently partaking in work experience with members of CPSL Mind. Though I have only spent a few days here, I now have firsthand experience of the workplace environment and I cannot express enough how lovely the people are and how deeply they care about their work and the members of their community. The team is incredibly close and converse like old friends and I am so grateful to them for helping me through this process. From my brief experience here, I have come to value the amazing work done by our local charities, having previously not realised just how influential they are in improving our community. It has been a wonderful experience, and I would strongly encourage children my own age to consider jobs within the non-profit sector.
