5 Benefits of Volunteering in Malaysia

Have you ever considered to volunteer in Southeast Asia? If so, Malaysia would be a great country of choice. Besides the fact that volunteering is becoming more and more popular amongst young people, choosing Malaysia as the location to volunteer in Southeast Asia comes with its perks.

Why volunteer in Southeast Asia?

There are numerous benefits to working as a volunteer in Southeast Asia and in general – benefits and experiences which are harder to gain in a regular job position before you even start to wonder if voluntary work matters, especially with the ongoing battle between money vs. meaning.  Malaysia is one of the best countries in the world to be a volunteer. Located in Southeast Asia and being a contrast between high-end technological and economic development versus the under-developed rural areas, you can discover many unique opportunities to volunteer in this culturally vibrant country. If you are on the edge to volunteer in Southeast Asia, the following arguments might be the extra push you need to take that leap into choosing Malaysia. Here are a few of the most important reasons why you should volunteer in Southeast Asia's most diverse country!  

1. Volunteering Is One Of The Best Uses Of Time

If you try to ask a volunteer what the aftermath of volunteering was like, you might be surprised by the answers you receive.  Most commonly known is the fact that volunteering is enriching the lives and future opportunities of volunteers. This might be becoming a cliché to hear, however, it remains a fact.  Volunteering is a form of self-growth and self-development. For example, being a volunteer in Southeast Asia will provide foreigners with a unique opportunity to experience a different culture, step out of their comfort zone and grow on a personal as well as professional level. The knowledge and skills volunteers acquire from their vacancies is often very beneficial and strengthens their character long-term.   The most impactful and productive way volunteering is useful to you is the fact that you develop real-world, useful skills. These skills are not only productive in your future professional life, but they are transferable to your day to day life as well. Do you think that having more skills and experience can help people in life, both socially and professionally? You can be sure that they do! P.S. Did you know that volunteering makes you happier?  Web MD studies have shown that volunteering can make you happier. This happens due to the fact that any act of perceived altruism makes us feel good about ourselves, about other people and about the world in general. The bottom line is that the more useful you make yourself, the happier you will tend to feel. So why not put your skills and time to good use, in the service of people who really need it – while feeling happier than usual? Sounds like a win-win-win! Now you might wonder; if volunteering makes me happier, and if I can do it from home, why volunteer abroad then? That’s a great question that leads us to benefit number 2!   

2. Volunteering Abroad Offers You A New Perspective

Volunteering tends to naturally make you view life, people and yourself in new ways that you would not have done otherwise. This is especially likely to be the case if you volunteer in a foreign culture in a country abroad (check out the best countries in Asia for volunteering) Many volunteers who go abroad choose to volunteer in Southeast Asia. This region has attracted people around the world for years. Understanding a new culture, a new way of life, a new way of growing your mind’s capacity to grasp new situations that you encounter. This leads to having a more open mind, questioning the previous paradigms you had and gaining insight into your current situation in life. If you volunteer for a more extensive time (at least a couple of weeks) and you are serious about investing your attention and effort into it, there are high chances that volunteering can change your life. That’s because the combined influence of a new social environment, a new culture, tackling new challenges, working with people who are different from you – all these factors will change the way you think, the way you behave and the way you see the world. If you are serious about volunteering, you will be astounded of the positive effects it can have in your life. Do your research, talk with people who have done it, get to know life as a volunteer, and you will understand the tremendous benefits you can gain from volunteering.  

3. There Are Plenty Of Opportunities For Volunteering In Malaysia

From taking care of refugees to teaching English to rural communities, from increasing the adoption of green energy to fighting deforestation, there are plenty of opportunities to choose from when it comes to volunteering in Malaysia. SOLS 24/7, our Malaysian- based NGO, has had a tremendous positive impact in various areas regarding social change - changing over 400,000 lives to date. If that’s still not enough to win you over, here are 7 more reasons why we’re worth considering. Besides us, there are also many other NGOs to choose if you want to volunteer in Southeast Asia or Malaysia, depending on what you are passionate about and what field of work you would like to explore further, even if it means working with animals.  

4. The cultural benefits of working in Malaysia is enormous 

Amongst the countries where you can volunteer in Southeast Asia, Malaysia sticks out. Compared to nearby countries in the region, Malaysia ranks high in socio-cultural development. Even though Malaysia has a lot of rural areas and is economically behind neighbouring countries such as Singapore and the tiny oil-rich Brunei, they do in return have a highly multicultural environment that consists of their three biggest local ethnicities (Malay, Chinese & Indian) and many smaller ethnicities - with each of them having their own culture and subcultures. However, this does not prevent them from having a common ground in the form of their identity as Malaysians.  Besides this, a huge amount of expats from all over the world have chosen Malaysia as their settling place, which gives the country touches of other cultures to explore here.   In addition, this creates a brilliant opportunity for you to meet an international network of people from every region of the world.  Together, all of this makes Malaysia the most culturally vibrant country to volunteer in Southeast Asia where there’s definitely plenty for you to discover.  On a side note, you might not want to turn a blind eye to what could be wrong with voluntourism.   

5. Volunteering Is For Everybody 

The reality of volunteering is that it is an opportunity available for everyone (and we mean every one of all ages, not just youngsters - check out 4 more volunteering stereotypes that we think you should be aware of), which means that having previous experience is rarely a must, only an added advantage. However, the skills that really matter for employers is the passion, willingness to create an impact, a positive mindset and energy of the candidate.  The good thing about it is, as mentioned before - that the volunteer in return will acquire and gain a lot of new skills, competencies and life long experience that can benefit the candidate’s future career. Even for people going abroad to rural places as a volunteer in Southeast Asia - a lot of new knowledge, skills and personal growth is there to be acquired which can be put to use in their professional career later on.  There you go! 5 benefits to why you should volunteer in the beautiful region of Southeast Asia. If you have other questions or considerations remember to see if one of our other blogs can help you on the right track! VOLUNTEER WITH US So, are you ready to take that leap into volunteering?

• Selecting The Best Organisation to Volunteer With
• Top 13 Organisations to Volunteer With in Malaysia
• How to Prepare to Volunteer in Asia 

  Read More - Everything You Need to Know About Volunteering in Asia