“So much satisfaction comes from your job, but volunteering takes it to another level. It brings benefits such as networking with like-minded people who share a passion for engineering.
Every day, as an engineer, you contribute to the community by delivering solutions to your clients. By volunteering for organisations such as EA, you can make a difference on a whole other level by driving continuous improvement to the greater engineering profession.
When you Chair a body like EA’s Structural Committee, one of the benefits is getting to know the other engineers, coming together and learning from them. In fact, it’s often quite humbling when you realise all of these busy, well-respected people have come together to give their time.
Volunteering isn’t just one-way. It helps the volunteer professionally, too. There have been times I’ve had a challenge at work and knew someone on the committee who has had the right experience or been able to recommend the right person to speak to. I’ve been able to call them, and they’ve been happy to share their knowledge and help guide me to the best solution. This willingness to help is typical of the engineering profession and I am proud to be part of it.”
Read more about Engineers Australia’s volunteers here.
Chris Sheedy is a professional writer whose work has taken him to the UK, USA, Europe and China. He has a fascination with big things - ideas, organisations, infrastructure, achievements, brands - and the people and processes required to make them a reality.