How Volunteer Burnout Works

Volunteer burnout is just like work-related burnout -- only you're not getting paid to barrel through it. You're tired, stressed, disengaged, resentful and at your wits end. Your volunteer work is no longer fulfilling and you may find yourself making excuses (often health-related) for not attending to your responsibilities.

For volunteers, signs that you are headed for burnout include losing enthusiasm for the mission of the organization and your tasks, worrying about your volunteer job when you're not there and feeling uninspired when you are. You may also notice yourself becoming cranky with other volunteers, clients and staff members because of your fatigue and resentment [source: Volunteer Today].

Bottom line: You dream of quitting. You doubt you're making a difference. You've lost the sense of satisfaction you used to have. Where's the fun in that?

For volunteer coordinators, the burnout signs to watch for among your volunteers are complaints that it's no longer fun to work there, a rise in the amount of worry expressed by a volunteer, chronic crankiness, combativeness with others and overreaction to minor problems [source: Volunteer Today]. You may also notice a volunteer's work performance slipping -- perhaps the volunteer is not completing assignments, is missing deadlines or just isn't showing up.

If you're able to identify the problem in its earliest stages, it's best to address it then. If it gets to the point where the volunteer is routinely not meeting his or her commitments, it will certainly feel like it's too late to fix things. At this point, the volunteer might have become so bitter, that he or she isn't readily willing to salvage the situation.

But all hope isn't lost. Read on to find out how volunteer coordinators and managers can make sure their volunteers are happy and learn what volunteers need to look for in the organizations to which they choose to donate their time.

The best volunteers are usually the ones most prone to burnout. That's because they're so dedicated, they often fail to take mental health breaks or ask for help. And because they're so dedicated, organizations often pile more and more responsibility on them.

Organizations that depend on volunteers have an inherent interest in making sure this doesn't happen. Good volunteers are hard to come by so it's important to make sure they take care of themselves -- even when they say they don't need to.

The first step in preventing burnout is to thank your volunteers regularly for their involvement and point out their contributions -- especially if they do a lot of administrative tasks. It can also help to set milestones for honoring volunteers, like sending a hand-written thank-you note or a small floral arrangement for service milestones (such as completing 100 work hours) or having a luncheon for volunteers who have completed a big project [source: Robbins].

The second thing to keep in mind is that many volunteers are dealing with heavy issues that can be emotionally draining. They may be answering calls on a suicide hotline, counseling battered women or helping the homeless. It's important to hold regular debriefing sessions or take volunteers aside after particularly difficult situations. They need help processing their feelings and getting support so strong emotions don't build up [source: Robbins].

It's also important to encourage volunteers to take time off. Just like regular paid employees, everybody needs a break. You can make it easier for your volunteers by instituting policies like requiring them to take a month off after every four-month commitment or setting concrete end dates to certain projects so they don't drag out indefinitely [source: Robbins].

Other things you can do include providing job descriptions with an estimated time commitment so volunteers know what they're getting into, delegating tasks so no one's plate gets too full and having contingency plans so volunteers don't have to worry if they miss some time because of an emergency or illness [source: Fundraiser IP].

Also, respect the fact that volunteers have other work and family commitments and keep the door open so they feel comfortable coming to you when there's a problem.

For more on volunteering, see the links on the next page.