Last week, after we talked about the benefits of volunteering, no one will likely argue that it’s a worthwhile thing to do.  But how can you find time for it amongst the insanity of your everyday life?  Here are a few tips:

•          Determine what’s important and meaningful to you, and prioritize it.  Set aside specific time for personal relaxation and volunteerism and protect it.  Don’t forget about things like exercise, and putting energy into your most important relationships.

•          Blend work, personal time, and hobbies with volunteer activities.  For example, grab your friends and make this weekend’s 5K participation a time to catch up, or get to know people in other departments at work by signing up for the company fundraiser.

•          Keep an organized calendar.  This will prevent your obligations from seeming overwhelming.  In scheduling commitments, keep stress to a minimum by not double-booking activities or leaving only small windows in between activities.

•          Learn how to say no.  Walk away from activities that aren’t important to you or aren’t providing an appropriate level of satisfaction.  If you’re too busy, tell whoever’s asking you to help that you would love to work with them, but your schedule just won’t allow you to do the program justice right now.

•          Be mentally present.  If you do choose to engage in something, do it all the way.  Lay off the Blackberry and cell phone so that you can focus on the task at hand.

•          Be kind to yourself.  As someone who’s interested in volunteering, you have already shown yourself to be an upstanding citizen and moral human being.  But you won’t be able to do it all, and the things you do won’t turn out perfectly.  Recognize your own limitations and accept help from others when you can.