Go all out to help

Johnny Prince: All about adaptability and alertness

I think volunteer travel has become so popular in the past 10 years because there have been more and more companies offering people the opportunity to help underprivileged communities in a safe and supported environment.

When choosing a volunteer project, it is important to make sure you will get a genuine insight into the community and the problems, and that the work will have a positive impact on the area.

Safety is of paramount importance in underprivileged areas, where crime levels can often be high.

Make sure the company you are going with is based nearby so, should you need it, you can get support at any time.
To be a successful volunteer, you need to be able to adapt quickly to changing environments and situations.

You need to assess problems when they arise and use initiative and conviction to solve them.

In 2001, I went to Nepal for three months with one of the first volunteer organisations in the region.

I was teaching at a rural school and learnt a great deal about the workings of volunteer placements and the issues that need to be addressed to ensure that the project becomes a success.

My experiences were valuable when it came to setting up my own volunteer programme.

At Pepper, volunteer projects are run throughout South Africa and trips can be one to three months long.

Projects are based in underprivileged schools, community centres and children's shelters. They vary according to the needs of the community at that time and can include teaching, food distribution and maintenance.

Our volunteers learn a great deal from the communities about the problems in South Africa.

For details, visit www.experiencepepper.co.uk

Pam Wilson: Nursing Malawi back to health

I was a clinical nurse instructor, one of three VSO volunteers working at the Malawi College of Health Science in Zomba in southern Malawi. I taught at the college and in the wards of Zomba Central Hospital.

I travelled throughout the southern half of Malawi, supervising students in their clinical placements at rural hospitals and health clinics.

One project involved helping establish links between Scottish general practitioners and Malawian health centres.

This is a three-year project backed by the Scotland Malawi Partnership.

Our goal was to set up internet networks to build two-way educational, medical, nursing and patient-group links and twin up to 20 clinics in the southern half of Malawi.

I worked with a Malawian colleague to find suitable government-run clinics on the Malawian side of the project.

Power cuts are a huge problem there. Only 7 per cent of the population has electricity and even then, generators can't cope when the demand increases.

Speaking the language is also a bit of a challenge but I mastered wording the greetings and understood some of what was being said.

I had a lovely house in a small village called Matawale, just outside Zomba, and shopped in the wonderful market there.

My social life was better than at home because I had a great network of volunteers — UK expats and Malawian friends.

We mainly socialised on weekends with parties and trips to various tourist spots in Malawi.

All in all, volunteering is a wonderful, fulfilling and rewarding experience. The preparation training, care and support that VSO gives you before you depart are excellent.

For details, visit www.vso.org.uk

Vicki Masters: The perfect support system

Having a job to go back to in the National Health Services Scotland had a huge impact on my decision to volunteer.

I'm in a senior management job and that's quite a big thing to give up. Most of my work is about strategically supporting senior managers to deliver on their objectives.

I worked at the ministry of education in the north of Namibia. I came thinking that I would develop the system but what I hadn't realised was that there already was a superbly crafted performance-management system in place.

My role was about supporting implementation and helping improve the national implementation plan.

I also set up a team, because whatever I set up needed to be sustainable when I left.

I used other education volunteers to support the leadership programme and had no qualms about saying that I had never been a teacher. I had knowledge about my field and I drew on others' expertise as head teachers.

My greatest achievement would be if the leadership-development programme for school principles have an impact on the examination results.

For details, visit www.vso.org.uk

Mike Joyce: A brave change of direction

In October 2006, at the age of 32, I decided to take a career break and attend the Peak Leaders Instructor Training course in Verbier, Switzerland.

Despite my age and experience, I would be lying if I said I wasn't really anxious about, first, making the decision and, second, coming to terms with quitting a “real'' career to embark on a ski instructor-training course.

Looking back over the past two and a half years, it has been quite a ride. The course was excellent and I wasn't the oldest there.

Peak Leaders provided excellent hosts, outstanding trainers and, most importantly, gave me the perfect opportunity to start an exciting new chapter in my life.

After completing the Peak Leaders BASI Level 2 in 2007, I started working for European Snowsport (ES) Ecole de Ski in Verbier, which became possible because of the partnership agreement between Peak Leaders and ES.

This season, I am proud to have returned to Verbier as the operations director of ES. We have an outstanding team of 75 instructors, many of whom are Peak Leaders alumni.

Out of season, I conduct lectures on sports science and run a small business in the United Kingdom.

It is easy to go through life, merely wondering what it will be like to do something different but never quite getting around to doing it.

So be brave! I was — and it has turned out to be one of the best decisions I have made in my life.

For details, visit www.peakleaders.com