SETTING AND ACHIEVING VOLUNTEER GOALS: A PLANNING GUIDE FOR VOLUNTEERS

Transcription

1 Developing Self-Awareness as a Volunteer Leader SETTING AND ACHIEVING VOLUNTEER GOALS: A PLANNING GUIDE FOR VOLUNTEERS E. Euclid Drive Centennial, CO P (303) F (303) GammaPhiBeta.org 1

2 TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction 3 Getting Started 4 Using Your Self-Reflection 5 Setting SMART GOALS 6 Creating an Action Plan 8 2

3 INTRODUCTION As a Gamma Phi Beta volunteer, it is crucial you create a plan for your personal development which in turn will positively affect the chapter you work with. One of the best ways to do this is by setting and achieving goals and objectives for your volunteer experience. After reading this guide, you will be able to: Communicate the benefits of goal-setting. Set SMART goals based on your self-reflection. Make a plan for achieving your SMART goals. Keep reading to learn more! 3

4 GETTING STARTED What are the benefits of goal-setting? Setting goals has several benefits: Sets priorities. By setting goals, you are communicating your priorities to those both inside and outside of the chapter. When you know these priorities, you are able to hold yourself accountable to working toward your goals and channel your resources accordingly. Increases commitment. When you set goals, you can dedicate your time and energy toward meeting your goals. Having a narrower focus allows you to develop a deep commitment to your goals, instead of a broad commitment to numerous tasks. Provides a framework for decision-making. When you know what your priorities are as a volunteer, you can make decisions around your priorities. When making decisions, you should ask yourself whether your response will move you toward achieving your goals. Moves from task-oriented to goal-oriented. When you focus solely on tasks you need to complete, you can suffer from burnout or apathy. When leaders reframe their positions around the goals they have set for themselves, the tasks they must complete as part of their responsibilities serve a greater purpose of moving toward the stated goal. Measures success. With goals at the forefront of the work you do individually or on your team, you are able to assess individual success more readily by metrics you have already put into place. When should I set my goals? You should use this planning guide to create a rough draft of your volunteer goals between March and May when your self-reflection is still fresh in your mind. Over the summer, you will review and modify your volunteer goals for the upcoming academic year during your coaching call with your volunteer supervisor. {TIP} By the time you read this guide, you should have already completed the Volunteer Self- Reflection. Want more information about the benefits of self-awareness and reflection, read the how-to guide Developing Self-Awareness as a Leader: A How-To Guide for Volunteers. How does setting personal goals for my volunteer experience help the collegians and the chapter I work with? As someone who our collegiate women look up to, it is important for you to model the practices of selfreflection and goal-setting for them. Also, by setting personal goals you are able to think creatively and intentionally about how you will use what you ve learned through your self-reflection to support the chapter and its members toward achieving their goals. 4

5 USING YOUR SELF-REFLECTION When you completed your self-reflection, you were asked to think about if and how you demonstrated various member competencies throughout the past year. Now, you will use your self-reflection to help you develop goals for the upcoming year. Use the prompts below to think critically about your selfreflection. 1. Based on your self-reflection, in which three member competencies did you feel most confident? {TIP} Need a refresher on the member competencies? Visit GammaPhiBeta.org! 2. What knowledge, skills and abilities led you to feeling most confident in these competencies? What experience contributed to your confidence level? 3. Based on your self-reflection, in which three member competencies did you feel least confident? 4. What knowledge, skills and abilities do you feel you are lacking in that led you to feeling least confident in these competencies? What experience contributed to your confidence level? 5. What knowledge, skills and abilities can you apply from question two to increase your confidence in the competencies you listed in question three? 6. What competencies do you want to focus on in the coming year? How will these competencies help you and the chapter you work with excel? 5

6 SETTING SMART GOALS Achieving goals can often appear to be daunting, but using SMART goals can make achieving your goals much more manageable. What are SMART goals? SMART goals are: Specific: Who? What? When? Where? Measurable: How will I know when my goal is accomplished? Achievable: Is my goal reasonable given the time and resources I have available to me? Results-focused: Does my goal focus on outcomes? Time-bound: What is an appropriate timeline to achieve my goal? A General Goal I will improve in the competency of self-awareness. A SMART Goal I will increase my self-awareness by writing in my journal once a week about living my values in my volunteer role and soliciting monthly feedback from my collegians and volunteer supervisor about my strengths and weaknesses. Answer the following prompts to begin your goal-setting process. 1. Which competencies do you want to be the focus of your development next year? How will these help you personally, professionally and in your volunteer role? The competencies you choose can be the basis of your general goals. 2. What do you want to accomplish as a volunteer leader in Gamma Phi Beta? Some examples could include how you work with collegians, the relationships you have with your volunteer team or working toward operational objectives on Order of the Crescent. 3. How does your development or desired accomplishments benefit the collegians or the chapters you work with? Ultimately, we want to push our chapters to excel, so thoughtful consideration of how your goals help the chapter reach their goals is crucial. Based on your answers, use the chart on the next page to set at least three SMART goals for your volunteer position. 6

7 Instructions: Use the following chart to turn your general goals into SMART goals. General Goal Goal 1: Goal 2: Goal 3: Specific: Who? What? When? Where? Measurable: How will I know when my goal is accomplished? Achievable: Is my goal reasonable given the time and resources I have available to me? Results-focused: Does my goal focus on outcomes? Time-bound: What is an appropriate timeline to achieve my goal? SMART Goal Goal 1: Goal 2: Goal 3: 7

8 CREATING AN ACTION PLAN One of the hardest parts of setting goals is not in creating them, but in holding yourself accountable to the goals you have set for yourself. Respond to the following prompts to create an action plan for yourself. 1. What are the first steps I am going to take to accomplish my goals? 2. How can I use my volunteer team, my volunteer supervisor and my collegians to help me stay accountable to my goals? 3. What resources do I need to help accomplish my goals? 4. How will I keep myself motivated toward accomplishing my goals? 5. How will I know when I am successful? {TIP} Check out GammaPhiBeta.org for numerous resources specifically tailored to volunteer learning and development. 8

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