The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others – Gandhi

I love this quote by Gandhi

Without having to explain how I spend my time in great detail these words capture the most memorable moments of my life.

How can you lose yourself in the service of others?

 

Volunteer Your Time!

My journey as a Volunteer began six years ago. I wanted to develop my mind and skills outside of my teaching profession.

Volunteering my time allowed me to tap into different work environments without having to change my job.

My hobbies and interests turned into volunteer work.

Events are always in need of extra hands and will contact you with a volunteer position.

My volunteer experience is very diverse. I am always volunteering for either sporting events or cultural events.

In 2013 I volunteered at the Abu Dhabi film festival. I was one of the many volunteers to stand in the fan pit and welcome the actors/ stars of the evening. It was my very first time to attend a movie premiere. The setting was spectacular. The Emirates Palace Hotel in Abu Dhabi hosted the event. When I was not in the fan pit, I was lucky to experience a glimpse of celebrity life.   My shifts and duties changed during the event days. One of my volunteer duties was to wait in the hallway of the hotel room where Jennifer Anniston was expected to stay during the event. A car would escort her to the red carpet on the opening night Gala for the seventh Abu Dhabi film festival. The highlight for me was to sit in Forest Whitaker seat at the Premiere of the heist caper life of Crime. I was a seat filler so that other celebrities would not be ushered accidentally to his reserved seat. I wish I had a fancy ball gown like the beautiful celebrities that surrounded me, but my red volunteer T-shirt and black pants were my Cinderella gown for the evening.

I recently volunteered the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship presented by EGA a European Tour golf tournament held in Abu Dhabi from the 16-19^th January 2019. Spending the two days on the Greens with the world’s top-ranked golfers from PGA and European tours is not a bad way to spend the weekend.

 

Would you consider working for free? Giving up a day to help make sure an event stays organized.

Can’t decide if Volunteering is for you.

Here is my list to motivate you towards the life of a Volunteer!

1. Volunteers meet new people. It is an opportunity to connect and network with like-minded people who you never thought you would meet.
2. Depending on the event and location you could meet famous, knowledgeable and experience people in an industry you might consider branching off into someday.
3. Your social schedule looks more interesting than usual.
4. You will diversify your routine and lifestyle.
5. You give service to others where help is needed.
6. You get rewarded for your time. Most events will give volunteers a goodie bag (T-shirt, cap, opportunity to win at a raffle draw, free food, etc.)
7. You add to your skills, knowledge, and experience.
8. You gain new memories and have so many stories to tell your friends and family.
9. You get a lot of content for your social media.
10. Finally, you have a lot of experience to add to your resume.