Today, we live life in a “me” and “I” society, in my opinion. And hey, I’m all for self-care, self-growth, self-love, all of those things. But I want you to stop for a second and think about the beneficiaries of this growth in our world. Think about the steps one is encouraged to take to get there as well. The result is that they’re all self-centered. Become your best self so YOU are the best person for YOU. Grow so that YOU can be your best self. The end goal is for YOUR benefit; the journey always seems to focus on a solo person. Although I do think there is a place for isolation during growing and changing times, I don’t believe it should be the only answer or way to achieve success in this area. Read this list to learn more about why you should be volunteering in your 20s.

A Quick Note on Community

I’m not quite sure when people forget that humans have grown with the help of their communities for centuries. I’m not sure when the idea of talking to or taking care of an elder turned into an action of the past or a useless teaching. I’m not sure when we lost being vulnerable and leaning on our friends as a solution for growth. There’s beauty in community, and oftentimes, there is growth in a community if you engage and allow it in your life. Growing doesn’t have to be a solo journey, and if you don’t think your community has what you need to grow, go seek to grow it. Sitting in your room and binging self-help YouTube videos and motivational speakers would be a new edit added to many autobiographies of the people we look up to and idolize. They all had communities or events in their lives that helped shape them into who they are today. Lean into that and find yours. Plant your seed and let the people and experiences around you water you as you grow.

How Do You Spend Your Time?

This is a question I’ve had to ask myself many times over the years. I look at my calendar and see the activity breakdowns and question where I can do better. I think many of us will notice that we spend a lot of time doing what seems to directly benefit us and spend very little time on actively working to benefit others. As a society, I think we should work on correcting this and making more time for our communities and those surrounding us.

Mentoring

This was something that truly fell into my lap in 2020. Never in a million years did I think I was someone fit to be a mentor, especially as a senior in college trying to figure out life for myself. Boy, was I wrong, and I’m glad I was wrong! Mentoring is definitely one of the most fulfilling things I’ve done over the years. What I once believed would just be a time sucker in my life has turned out to be the exact opposite.

I have been lucky enough to have great mentors much older than me in my life, so I took the role seriously. I reflect on the mentees I was given four years ago, and I easily forget that they were once mentees. Now I truly see them as friends I adore and I’m so proud of. They’re all doing fantastic things and are somehow about to graduate college, which is bittersweet. They grow up so fast!

Through this mentoring experience, I learned a lot. I learned a lot about myself, my strengths and weaknesses. I learned a lot about what I am actually good at and I took extra pride in mastering things that I did not excel in before. Additionally, I learned how to go through life keeping an eye out for the needs of others and not just for my own needs. And I think the most precious part of the experience was being able to get a front-row seat to see these people grow right before my eyes in their own ways. Oftentimes, they held a mirror up to my life, my perception of self, and where I was when I was their age. This was quite therapeutic.

Volunteering

I know. It’s what we all had to do in grade school or college to get credit before graduation. That used to be my perspective on it, too, until it wasn’t. When I look back on some of the most formative events in my life, some of those revolve around the time I spent volunteering. Some of those events had a greater reach than others, but at the core, I still acted to benefit others. I’ll admit, I went into both opportunities thinking, “Wow. This will be such a noble thing for me to do.” Let it be known that I left those events thinking, “I have so much more to learn about the world and myself, and these people changed my life in ways they will never know.”

Volunteering often times trips me up. Just like in my experiences, people often go in thinking that they’re doing a good thing, but if they do it right, they leave feeling guilty and proud simultaneously. And when I say “do it right,” I’m referencing the concept of humbling themselves before they start their work. They take themselves off a pedestal, sit shoulder-to-shoulder with the people they’re helping, ask questions, listen, reflect, and take something away from the experience, instead of staying on their high horse.

When you actually take the time to learn about the people you are helping, you’re bound to learn much about the new community you find yourself in and, ultimately, a lot about yourself and the way you have or haven’t been navigating life. I’ll warn you – odds are the experience will be incredibly humbling. You’ll quickly realize that what you thought you once knew is probably wrong. You might find out that you held preconceived notions the whole time with no foundation. What you’re standing amongst while volunteering is soon to be your new foundation, and that is growth!

Kids Are the World’s Biggest Mirror

Kids will teach you a lot about yourself. They’re little un-jaded humans that have no filter and say whatever is on their mind, which comes out often as savagery. It’s likely that I’ve learned the most about myself through kids I’ve volunteered or worked with. It’s humbling for certain, but what they say isn’t debatable many times. Kids can also be the gentlest of souls and give you more confidence about the better parts of you, too, which always warms my heart and creates a time for self-reflection. Kids will also teach you how to work on your patience and overall communication. Even though there might be emotionally taking moments, the belly laughs that they will give you will make it all worth it. I think some of the most brave volunteer environments you can find yourself in, are those with kids, because you just never know what you’re going to get on any given day.

Beauty in Darkness

In the past, the volunteer opportunities I engaged in often circled around refugee children or people experiencing homelessness. Again, I really sought out the heavy hitters to make myself feel good. As heavy as those communities are – and they are heavy – I won’t even try to downplay the reality these people face every day. There was so much joy and beauty in each of these individuals. The people I met in these communities will stay in my head forever. The stories I learned during these experiences are stories I will never forget. And the way I matured and grew as a person, I will never be able to repay them. Here I was, going into an area of need, serving, and thinking I was the helper… but little did I know, I was about to be helped and watered in ways I never could have imagined.

I love volunteering, and I am determined to prioritize it more over these next years of my life. It always puts life into perspective for me, no matter what I’m currently struggling with in life. I have found myself being an advocate and a voice of reason in my own communities when difficult conversations come up. Not that I’m some sort of social justice warrior, but being able to shed light on a topic that others do not have as much exposure to has been a blessing in my life. Hopefully this list has given you more insights as to why you should be volunteering in your 20s.