3 Reasons Why Adding an Annual Volunteer Day to Our Business Model Helps our Remote Team
At Connected Accounting, we believe in giving back to the community. On the last Friday of September, our team takes a day off to volunteer at a local charity or non-profit organization. We're excited to announce this annual tradition and share its positive impacts on our team. Maybe our efforts will inspire other businesses to do so as well.
Volunteering has several benefits, both for the individual and for the community as a whole.
Volunteering connects you with others, which is especially vital in a remote work environment. Stanford professor Jeffrey Pfeffer published a paper in the Journal of Environmental and Occupational Medicine. He emphasizes how volunteering can help overcome “digital disadvantage,” whereby remote workers suffer from isolation and lack of visibility. We all need social connections. Volunteer days are an easy way to help our team stay connected.
Another key benefit is a boost to your self-confidence, self-esteem, and life satisfaction. An article published by the Project Management Institute of Southern Maryland highlights how “doing good for others and the community [...] provides a natural sense of accomplishment. [Being] a volunteer can also give you a sense of pride and identity.” From beach cleaning, packing onions for the food pantry, to working at the Veterans Service Office, we each helped a cause dear to our hearts.
Volunteering is essential for physical health and mental health. Studies have shown that volunteering can also help reduce stress, combat depression, and increase life satisfaction. In a Forbes article, Brenda Pak explains that volunteering can decrease anxiety. “The Mayo Clinic states that a measurable reduction in anxiety comes from volunteering. By spending quality time helping others, you will feel a sense of appreciation, which has shown stress-reducing effects.”
We hope that by volunteering, we can positively impact our community and the lives of those who need it most. If you're interested in volunteering with us, please reach out. We'd love to have you join us on our next volunteer day.
