Volunteerism After Retirement

Ah, work. No matter how much you love what you do, who hasn't thought about calling in sick one unexpected day to postpone some lingering items on your "to do" list? But then retirement arrives and the lack of colleague interaction"and even the ritual of some formerly meddlesome paperwork"has you awake well before the work alarm would have ever sounded during the workweek.

This loss of professional identity is unsettling for most people, said Dr. Nancy Schlossberg, a national psychological expert and author of Revitalizing Retirement: Reshaping Your Identity, Relationships, and Purpose. Schlossberg encourages people preparing for retirement to consider their "psychological portfolio" as much as their financial one so that they arrive at this point in their lives with a sense of purpose and direction, which likely will involve volunteering.

"Volunteering and becoming a lifelong learner helps one to feel that he or she matters," Schlossberg said.

Robert Rosenthal, director of communications with VolunteerMatch.org, a free online volunteer coordination company, suggests people consider three basic questions before deciding what type of organization to volunteer for and at what level:

"¢ What kinds of skills do I want to use while volunteering?

"¢ Where do I want to volunteer and how much of my time do I want to give?

"¢ What specific cause do I care about?

"Once they get over those road blocks, it's easy to place someone where it will make it likely that a deep relationship is created between an individual and a non-profit," Rosenthal said.

Rosenthal also points out that the way volunteers are helping non-profits is changing in favor of volunteers who want to get the most out of their experience. This is because the demand from non-profit groups for help is high, so volunteers can actually help create their own unique volunteer positions.

"The new model is driven by the wants of the volunteer," Rosenthal said. "The volunteer has leverage to be in command of their experience. Opportunities can be created."

Baby Boomers (born 1946"1964) are in a unique position among other volunteer age groups, because their professional skill sets are valued and needed and are the skills that the generation prefers to use. This is different from Generation X (born 1964"1981), which tends to be drawn to volunteer opportunities that don't use any of their professional skills.

Rosenthal urges, though, that volunteers don't let this power overshadow the good intentions that drive a person to volunteer in the first place. To that end VolunteerMatch.org offers monthly webinars on how to be a great volunteer and how to get the most out of your volunteer experience by asking specific questions from organizations you're interested in.

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