4 Ways to Make Friends Whilst Volunteering Abroad

You hear a lot about how travelling alone can teach you many things. It’s true, it does. Being independent means that as individuals we are self-sufficient and don’t need to depend on anyone else. We can all be independent and most of us take pride in being able to support ourselves without the help of others. This often makes it easier to do what we want and what we need. We don’t need to wait on others, and no one holds us back.  

Many of us want to travel alone to learn more about ourselves, so we try. After all, it shows us whether we can accomplish something big independently. However, naturally, we humans will feel alone or lonely at times. This feeling may feel more intense when we’re in a new place or experiencing something new to us. One of those things that it teaches you is learning how to make friends. 

Being independent and travelling alone is great but having friends to be with you makes the experience better. Making friends has plenty of benefits; connecting with others makes you feel good, you learn from your friends and feel more confident and less vulnerable in a new place. 

Before I left to volunteer abroad, I was anxious about not making any friends. However, it’s easier than you think and I’m glad my anxiety was wrong, I have built lifelong friendships.  

With that in mind, here are four lessons I’ve learnt on my international volunteering programme experience. 

Take Advantage of Online Platforms

If you have registered to volunteer with an organisation, make use of their social media pages. Often, they will have a Facebook page where you can post and ask about other volunteers going to the same destination and dates as you. Some organisations may set up groups where volunteers can introduce themselves and get to know each other before travelling. 

Use this space to reach out to others who will be travelling at the same time as you. This is useful especially when the nerves and anxiety start kicking in. Other volunteers will be in the same boat as you. Having this chance to break the ice before you meet is great. You can support each other and once you arrive at the destination it’ll feel like you’ve been friends long before you meet. 

Introduce Yourself

It’s daunting at first, meeting so many people all at once. That’s the good thing about a volunteer house though, you’ll be sure to find someone you will get along with! Don’t be afraid to greet everyone and introduce yourself, don’t wait for others. If you feel shy, you can plan what you’re going to say beforehand.  

The best way to get to know people is to first introduce yourself. I’ve had times where I didn’t get the chance to do this due to having so many new volunteers around. After time passed it became slightly awkward to introduce myself since I had already seen them around. Let them know who you are, why you’re volunteering and ask them the same. This helps people connect with each other and makes conversing later easier.  

Small Talk Goes a Long Way

No matter how long you’re with other volunteers, every chance you get to speak to them is a way to build on that friendship. Greeting them in the morning, when you see them and before going to bed is a nice way to build on these connections with new people. Being friendly is about small talk.  

Over breakfast is a good time to talk about your day ahead and what’s coming up for you and the other person. During my volunteering experience, the mornings were great to speak to everyone, see what everyone was up to and find out if there were any group activities to get involved with. We all left the volunteer house together. If you’re travelling to a volunteer placement together use this time to get to know them better. Ask them about their life at home, what they like to do in their spare time and take this time to initiate conversations or activities you can do together, for example, going for lunch or karaoke. Catching up at the end of the day is also lovely. Using these small interactions with people help you to know more about them and share similarities and things you have in common. 

By engaging in small talk with the volunteers I met, it helped me stay in touch with them after my volunteering experience. Using this time also means that you can add each other on social media and use these platforms to check in with each other later.  

Be Open

Most of us know by now the sort of people we like and get along with. We probably have a preconceived notion of who we want to make friends with based on our personal friendships back home. However, you will meet a plethora of different people from different backgrounds and it’s not guaranteed you’ll meet someone you’re used to meeting at home. One thing is for sure though, if you’re volunteering, you’ll meet likeminded people and will share that in common at the very least! 

Be sure to keep an open mind. You may surprise yourself and build a long-lasting friendship with someone you never thought you’d be friends with. Be open-minded to all genders, ages and backgrounds. I learnt a lot from making friends with older people as well as younger. I learnt about the places they were from, their life at home and who they are as a person. It worked well; we were all learning from each other.  

Being open is also about pushing yourself out of your comfort zone. You don’t want to miss out! You never know when you may meet these people again or be in the same place again. Every day is different, be sure to say ‘yes’ even if it’s something you normally say no to. Of course, if it makes you feel uncomfortable, it’s okay to say ‘no’. With my experience, I gained a lot from saying ‘yes’ even though I was tired but also gained from saying ‘no’ to things I knew I definitely wasn’t interested in.