There are many benefits to joining an association. When you work for LvHJ, you are also encouraged to become a member of any number of nonprofit associations to help grow your career which allows you to give back to the community at the same time. Since we are Professionals for Good, we are always looking for opportunities to help make the world a better place. Here is how giving back to the community, especially nonprofit associations in particular, can enrich your life.
1. Leadership Opportunities
If you read our blog on public speaking, you can see that joining an association has the added benefit of giving you the opportunity to possibly take on a leadership role within the association. This gives you experience with public speaking; you can learn how leadership hierarchies work and get a feel for different processes within an organization as well.
You can also add leadership roles to your LinkedIn profile or resume and develop your career while taking on additional responsibilities outside of your scope of work.
2. Team Development
When you join an association with fellow members of your LvHJ team, you get to know them on a personal level. You may not know that your mentor is passionate about birds and their habitats, but the next community event you attend could shine a light on that side of them.
Sometimes we’re siloed in our positions and having the opportunity to get out there and work as a team can show you that you like taking on leadership positions or maybe too much conversation zaps your energy. It’s always a good idea to take the chance to learn more about yourself and learn how you work with others as well.
3. Being Active
If you don’t have a treadmill desk, a trampoline underfoot or one of those balance boards at the ready you might get stuck sitting all day while you work, then you’re ready to sit in front of the TV and veg out for the rest of the night.
Becoming an active member of the community could help get those extra 3,000 steps a day, that you’ve been trying to get on your Fitbit since January.
The nonprofit association of your choice may allow you to get outside and plant a tree or otherwise help beautify your local lakefront picnic spot.
4. New Friends
It’s a no-brainer that when you join a club, you’re bound to meet new faces. Some of the people you meet may share the same interests as you. Maybe you’ll fall in with a crowd of dads with kids who love ballet. Or, you may find your next favorite gym after you inadvertently schmooze with a group of women and ardently express your loathing of your current membership.
5. Learning About the Community
Whether you’re joining a local nonprofit or volunteering your time online, you also have the chance to get the inside scoop on current events in a niche space.
You may learn there is a new community garden under construction in your neighborhood or you could gain access to a beta version of a new accounting tool you weren’t previously privy to.
Joining an association gives you the opportunity to continue learning and growing – inside your field and out of it.
6. Finding Purpose
Sadly, sometimes we find ourselves working through the same routine, without much levity. We may find we are poised to rise to the next challenge at work and we give it all we’ve got, but perhaps some of the verve is lost when it comes to pursuing activities outside our periphery.
Joining a nonprofit organization that touches upon your core values can reinvigorate your hope for the future and give you a renewed sense of purpose throughout all aspects of your life, not just work.
For example: LvHJ has worked with Strength Matters, a nonprofit that provides financial reporting templates, risk management guides and additional resources to members of the affordable housing community.
This type of connection encourages us that we’re on the right path and that we’re truly doing good by helping people make better financial choices so they can achieve their dreams.
Becoming a member of a nonprofit association and giving back to the community has its own rewards, and they are different for everyone. Get a glimpse of life at LvHJ, nonprofit CPA firm in California, and see all the opportunities a career here affords.
