What’s your social return?
I want you to think about the last time you volunteered. Was it last week? Last month? Last year?
Now, think about what you did. Did you help build a community garden? Perhaps you served lunch at a homeless shelter or organized your local food bank.
Finally, reflect on your thoughts upon finishing your project. Did you feel good about having an immediate impact on someone or something? Or maybe you liked the innate joy it brought you.
I’m willing to bet that after your last volunteer stint, you didn’t think about your social impact on the organization or project. But, thanks to a new report from VolunteerMatch, we can now tell you just how truly valuable your work is.
For instance, did you know that your time is worth $21.36 per hour? Or that the value of an average volunteer is $3,075? And finally, that the combined social return of volunteers is equivalent to $630,404,485? Now those are some impressive numbers!
So, next time you decide to give back to your community; in whatever way, shape or form; stop and think about the social return you’re providing, and how impactful the work you do truly is.