How To Spruce Up Your Resume With Volunteer Work

If you’re looking for your next job, you might be looking for ways to help elevate yourself to stand out from the pack. Whether you’re looking for your first job or your fifth, it all starts with a solid resume. Even if you don’t have extensive work history, you can show your work ethic and interests through volunteer methods! Around the holidays, there are many opportunities to add to your already outstanding achievements. In this blog, we’ll be giving you tips on how to spruce up your resume with some volunteer work!

Toy and Food Drives

Let’s start with the holiday toy and food drives. A lot of companies tend to do this, including us at Barton Associates! We’ve recently had a food drive where all of our employees came together and donated food to multiple charities. Food drives provide requested food items to those in need and donating can create a significant difference. You could also utilize toy drives as well, with organizations such as Toys for Tots that achieves a similar goal.

Gift Wrapping

Another way to get involved around the holidays includes volunteering for gift wrapping. The holidays are a time of giving, and presents continue to flow all around. After toy drives, a lot of organizations need help wrapping gifts that will be given out to help their good cause. A local search will give you plenty of organizations to choose from, and this is a quick and simple way to give back during the holiday season.

Blood Donations

Blood donations can be another volunteer opportunity to add to your resume. Organizations like The American Red Cross are always looking for volunteers to donate blood, plasma, platelets, and more. It is also said that one donation can help save up to 3 lives! Companies can also utilize blood drives to give more employees the chance to donate. Whether it’s an individual donation or a blood drive, this gesture will help your resume stand out.

Soup Kitchen or Meal Center

Donating your time at a soup kitchen is one of the most direct ways to make an impact. Though many people volunteer for a shift with their religious organization or company, like we do at Barton, singles and pairs are welcome too! Preparing and serving meals for people in need takes significant time and effort, and is great to add to any resume. Whether you volunteer for a few hours or a few weeks, any help makes a difference. It shouldn’t take more than a quick online search to find a facility in your area.

Have your resume ready to go? Apply for your next role with us today at bartoncareers.com! We have openings in all 10 of our nationwide locations.

Follow Up

One thing to do after a job interview is to follow up. It’s common to thank the interviewer for their time and consideration regardless of whether or not you get the role. This can be done through an email, message, or even a well-written letter. Another option could be to connect with the interviewer on LinkedIn to see if they would consider you for an open position in the future, and stay up to date with the company that interests you. Overall, following up shows a sign of respect to the interviewer and the professionalism displayed from it could certainly help a job hunter down the line.

Identify Key Takeaways

Another thing to think about after your interview is your takeaways. Did you execute your plan? Did you ask questions? Did you follow along? All of these things should be self-evaluated after your interview to see how you did. Make sure to write down these takeaways to know what you did right and wrong. If you don’t think you did as well as you could’ve, don’t feel bad! Take it as a learning experience and try to focus on what to do better for your next interview.

Stay Patient

It may take some time for your employers to get back to you regarding the open role. Having patience will make this process easier for yourself as you don’t want to dwell on the waiting time too much. Take your mind off of it by focusing on other hobbies and aspects of your life, or even by looking at other job opportunities. If the wait is getting longer than expected, a polite email asking for an update will also suffice. Maintaining patience isn’t always easy, but it is a critical step to utilize after a job interview.