Top Ten PRACTICAL Reasons to Volunteer

As part of our partnership with the POLO Ralph Lauren Foundation a few years ago, we submitted the following "Reasons to Volunteer" for use on their website. We think it still holds up, but you be the judge ...

In theory, there are dozens of compelling reasons to volunteer: altruism, giving back, building your community, etc. But intellectual arguments aren’t quite enough to get some of us off the couch, so here’s a list of reasons that might hit a bit closer to home:

Top Ten PRACTICAL Reasons to Volunteer:

1. Because how many more Saturday morning trips to Pottery Barn can you really tolerate?
2. Because you’re temporarily smarter than the kid whom you’re tutoring, and that boosts your self-esteem.
3. Spend less time with your boyfriend while avoiding the hassle of breaking up.
4. Because the paltry wage that you receive at your paying job is little more than an insult, anyway.
5. Another job = another water cooler = another set of opinions on reality TV.
6. Free donuts.
7. Studies show that women are more likely than men to volunteer, and those odds are hard to find elsewhere.
8. After your 80 hours of court-ordered community service, you’re already in the habit.
9. Because you know you have a novel in you, but it can’t be called “Decent Grades in College and the Reasonably Comfortable Life That Follows”.
10. Everyone knows that Superman is the only guy who gets paid for saving the world.