Since I was raised as a 4-Her and FFA member on a farm, I’ve always thought volunteerism was just what you did. I don’t really remember a time in my life when I didn’t volunteer for something, nor can my husband. After all, that’s how most things get done in rural communities, right? While traveling the world, I’ve learned that not everyone shares the same perspective on volunteerism, and in the last year, found a group of cynics who have a hard time believing people invest their time, energy and talents without looking for self-gratification.

Have I benefited from volunteering?  Sure, but probably not in the way some people think.  Here are some of the “profits” I’ve experienced from investing time in volunteerism.

• Satisfaction in watching people grow: We’ve helped with our local 4-H  dairy project for about 12 years. This involves judging practices every Saturday from February til May, educational workshops, showmanship clinics on Saturdays in the summer, fair activities and a few other items.  We won’t have a 4-H member in our family for a few more years, but have taken this on as our major volunteerism effort because we enjoy seeing how young people can grow their work ethic, find a career passion, discover perseverance and learn how cool agriculture can be. There are times when adolescent boys drive me nuts and Saturday morning grumblings after I’ve been on the road non-stop, but the profit is in seeing “our dairy kids” grow into adults who can communicate, know the meaning of work and hopefully contribute to agriculture.
• Resiliency: While helping to move church budget into the black as an Elder & Finance Chair, and dealing with a pastor who lacked integrity, I discovered questions came from the most interesting places.  I have also found some of the questions and cynicism about why a group of agriculturists would want to start a not-for-profit like the AgChat Foundation very interesting. The truth is, it was started to help farmers in social media – just like the mission says.  That’s the whole story. The good news is that all of this builds resiliency – a necessity in life.
• Network: Whether it is professional connections or personal relationships, you develop a deeper network by volunteering. We have an outstanding corp of babysitters because of our 4-H, FFA and church volunteerism. Likewise, the connections across agriculture have allowed me to build my business in a way that I never expected. I don’t volunteer to network, but it is a great natural outcome.
• Importance of stepping back: Many organizations look to their best volunteers to do more. Both my husband and I have stepped back from boards so that we don’t lose our heart for an organization. Unfortunately, people sometimes read “no” as a lack of commitment, but we all have to be comfortable in learning to allow others to fill the gaps – and not bear the burden on our own shoulders.
• Thought leadership: When I started a weekly conversation on Twitter for those in the food, fuel, feed and fiber business, I never expected it to turn into something that 2500 people from 8+ countries would participate in. Nor did I expect the personal and professional attacks as #agchat grew. Just for the record, the hundreds of hours I’ve invested organizing, moderating & pulling ideas together have been 100% volunteer. Costs include rushed family meals & kid ballgames, missed bedtime stories, a whole lot of time diverted from my own business, strained relationships, sleep deprivation and just a few headaches around a certain whale. I rarely mention these because of a singular upside that transcends the sacrifices MANY have made in growing #agchat; the opportunity to bring together a community around farm and food issues. The conversation is the profit – and the thought leadership that people who are intimately involved have gained from it.  And isn’t about time agriculture is in the thought leadership role?
• Doing what’s right: This seems simple, but “what’s right” can have many different interpretations. I’ve learned this from a building a community of professional speakers for those in generation X and Y, known as NSA XY.  We’ve have had a singular vision that helped us focus on what was right for the group, regardless of who was trying to derail/devalue. I’ve learned tremendous things from volunteering with my colleagues, including the importance of integrity.

If you’re looking to engage volunteers, consider what’s important to them. Most of the time, it’s not about money, it’s about leaving a “heart print.” If you already volunteer, make sure it’s with an organization that’s providing you “personal profits.” Sometimes our cynical and over-sensationalized world seems to lose sight that it is possible for humans to do the right thing just because they want to help. And now I’m going to get back to our fair to enjoy some more of these “profits.” If that makes me greedy, so be it.