Does the prospect of recruiting volunteer help make you shudder? Sometimes it almost seems easier to handle the task yourself instead of trying to find someone else to do it. However, that line of thinking may be unfair to two people—you, and the person who never is asked to do the job. If you take on too many extra duties, you will soon feel overburdened, perhaps even resentful. Moreover, if you do not ask that other person, he may be missing a valuable opportunity to serve.
Finding and keeping satisfied volunteers does not have to be an impossible task. Here are three simple guidelines to make the recruiting job easier:
- Match the worker’s abilities to the job
- Be honest and keep your promises
- Give appropriate orientation or training
If you approach prospective volunteers sincerely and enthusiastically, keeping these guidelines in mind, you should have some positive responses.
1. Match the worker’s abilities to the job
Let them know that you sincerely appreciate their abilities and have a real need for their help. If Mrs. Smith has a reputation for bringing good cookies to church dinners, why not ask her to help with the cookie ministry to first-time visitors?
Do you need someone to take charge of a resource room of teaching materials? That sounds like a job for someone who has good organizational skills. Are you in desperate need of costumes? Surely, you need someone who sews, or who sewed years ago. This may be just the job for a person who can handle a sewing machine but does not get out much. Who would be the logical person to call and remind people of upcoming committee meetings? Someone who likes to talk on the telephone might be glad to take on that task.
If you are not sure about people’s interests, try doing an interest survey. Insert simple forms in the Sunday bulletin and ask people to check or list the things they like to do. Be sure to have them include their names so you can contact them. Organize the survey results on a computer or in a card file box. List all those who are interested in teaching, and make a note of what age they prefer to teach. Make similar lists of those who want to help with everything else you can think of: food, carpentry, driving, music, etc. An organized system makes it easier to remember people’s interests. Keep your lists updated as new people come, or as you learn of additional interests.
2. Be honest, and keep your promises
If you tell Jim that you only need him to teach the junior high boys class for six weeks, keep your word to him. Better not trust your memory on this one, although Jim will likely remember. It is best to immediately write it on your calendar, and talk to Jim before the six weeks is up. Then if you do not have another teacher to take over at the end of the six weeks, you will have time to look for one. Perhaps by that time Jim will want to stay with the class if you need him.
Be honest with Jim when you ask him to teach, too. Do not assure him the class is no trouble, only to have him discover later that there are some unruly behaviors to deal with. By being honest with him ahead of time, he can plan how to approach the class.
3. Give appropriate orientation or training
By giving your volunteers the training they need, you will be helping them get off to a good start. Do not expect them to go into a new job “blind.” They need to know what the job involves.
In the church preschool department where I teach, we like to invite prospective teachers and substitutes in to visit and help ahead of time. This gives them a chance to be acquainted with our routine, the children, teachers, and lesson materials. With this orientation to our department, most willingly agree to help when needed.
Orientation may be as easy as showing the worker where supplies are kept. If you have volunteered to make the coffee, your job is much easier if you know where to find coffee, filters, cups, cream, sugar, and spoons. Anything that can be done to make the volunteer’s job easier will reduce his frustration. A list of printed instructions is helpful to anyone who has not done the job before.
Not every person that you approach will be a willing volunteer. Be prepared for some rejections, but do not take it personally. Instead, realize that people have many reasons for saying, “No.” Maybe they just do not like to do volunteer work; maybe this is not the right time, or the right job, for them. You may never know their reasons, but it pays to be courteous and not pressure them. If you handle their rejection with the right attitude, they may answer the next request by saying, “Yes.”
Aren’t these the guidelines we want others to follow when they ask us to volunteer? By following them, we are doing what Jesus told us in Matthew 7:12 (NIV), “In everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the law and the Prophets.”
The Golden Rule. What better rule could we use for recruiting volunteers?
LeAnn Campbell began freelancing about 14 years ago and has had over 900 articles, columns, and stories published. She teaches workshops on the craft of writing.
LeAnn retired in 1995 from teaching special education in a secondary vocational-technical school, and has taught severely handicapped children. She teaches preschool children in church, and serves on the church Mother’s Day Out ministry, Vacation Bible School ministry, and Education ministry. She and her husband have six adult children, 12 grandchildren and two great-grandsons.
She is president of Christian Writers Fellowship in Girard, Kansas, which hosts an annual one-day conference. LeAnn is a member of Missouri Writers Guild and the branch Joplin Writers Guild, Ozark Writers League, and Heart of America Christian Writers Network (HACWN). As Marketing Coordinator for HACWN, she writes a monthly online column of markets and a MarketWorks column for Writes of Passage newsletter.
