With Make A Difference Day coming up tomorrow, we thought we’d share some tips on finding the perfect volunteer opportunity! These are great tips for every day and Make A Difference Day!

You’ve got skills. You’ve got talent. You have a desire to serve in your community.

But maybe you just don’t know where to start to find your dream volunteer position. Here’s some tips to help you find it.

Know what you’re looking for.

Do you want to work with youth? Do you want to be a mentor? A tutor? A leader? Someone to show them that things aren’t as bad as they seem?

Make sure you have an idea how you’d like to volunteer before you contact a specific nonprofit about an opportunity. It will help you to find something that you’ll be happy doing.

If you don’t know what you want to do, though, there are plenty of ways to try out some different things while you’re looking for that perfect volunteer position. A HandsOn Action Center or local volunteer center is a great place to start finding volunteer opportunities.

You can even start your own volunteer project if you’re not sure what you’re looking for.

Know what an organization is looking for.

Call the organization that you want to volunteer with and see if you can set up some time to talk to the volunteer manager. They’ll be able to tell you everything you’d want to know about the program, and probably some things you didn’t even think to ask.

Try to find out if there’s any kind of volunteer orientation that you can attend before committing to serve with the organization. You’ll be able to get an idea about what the organization is looking for this way.

If you can talk to a volunteer that does the same kind of work, do it. You’ll get another perspective on the type of work you’ll be doing, and if it’s really the right position for you.

Learn about the benefits and ask questions.

Let’s be honest. We’re looking to get something out of our volunteer experiences, whether it’s a resume boost, the chance to learn a new skill, playing with puppies and kittens, or just the warm fuzzies that you get from volunteering, we want something back from our experience.

It’s ok to ask what you’ll get out of your volunteer experience. Asking questions about the tasks you’ll be doing helps you to find out if the opportunity is right for you. Make sure you know the kind of work you’ll be doing, the time commitment the position requires, who you’ll be working closest with, and what kind of recording procedures the organization has.

Find out how you can get more responsibility if you want it.

If the volunteer position you’re interested in isn’t quite what you’re hoping for, find out if the position can be changed to make it something closer to what you’re looking for. It’s possible that the organization has never thought about using volunteers in the way you’re looking to contribute. It never hurts to ask.

What have you done to find the perfect volunteer position? Let us know in the comments!