Introduction: Learning Beyond the Classroom
After completing our two-day “Working with Youth” course at Breakthrough Academy, both of us — James and Yuli — walked away inspired. We had learned powerful frameworks: active listening, empathy, building trust, and encouraging youth to take ownership of their growth.
But as we soon discovered, real youth work doesn’t happen in the classroom. It happens in community centres, on basketball courts, during school workshops, and in heart-to-heart conversations.
Volunteering with youth allowed us to put theory into practice. Yet along the way, we also experienced the real challenges that come with mentoring. In this blog, we’ll explore both sides — the pros and cons of being a youth volunteer — and how each shaped our personal and professional growth.
The Pros: Why Volunteering with Youth Is Incredibly Rewarding
1. You Develop Real Mentoring Skills Through Experience
In class, we learned how to guide a youth using the GROW model — Goal, Reality, Options, and Way Forward. But during volunteering, we saw how each youth’s personality required a different approach.
Some responded well to encouragement; others needed firm boundaries. Through practice, we learned how to ask better questions, build rapport, and guide without controlling — which is the essence of mentoring.
“It’s one thing to learn about mentoring; it’s another to apply it when a 15-year-old challenges you with silence.”
Over time, our communication became more natural, empathetic, and purposeful — not just with youth, but in our workplaces and families too.
2. It Enhances Emotional Intelligence and Patience
Youth work demands emotional maturity. Young people often test limits or express frustration indirectly. Rather than reacting, we learned to listen between the lines and sense what was really being said.
When a youth rolled his eyes or walked away mid-conversation, we reminded ourselves: “Behaviour is communication.”
That mindset shift built patience, empathy, and resilience — traits that no textbook can teach.
3. You Learn to Communicate with Clarity and Compassion
Many adults underestimate how perceptive youths are. They notice tone, body language, and authenticity. Volunteering forced us to refine how we spoke — to be clear, respectful, and encouraging, even when giving feedback.
In mentoring sessions or group discussions, we learned to:
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Use simple, relatable language.
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Ask open-ended questions (“What do you think?” instead of “Why didn’t you do that?”).
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Use affirmations (“I can see you really tried.”).
These communication habits have carried over into every area of life — leadership, parenting, and teamwork.
4. It Builds Leadership and Confidence
Working with youth builds leadership through service. As volunteers, we were often asked to lead small groups, facilitate activities, or mediate conflicts.
At first, it was intimidating — what if they didn’t listen? What if we said the wrong thing? But with each session, our confidence grew.
We learned to lead with empathy instead of authority, to listen before instructing, and to create a safe environment for expression. That’s leadership in its purest form.
5. It Gives a Sense of Purpose and Fulfilment
There’s a unique joy in seeing a youth open up for the first time, smile after a tough day, or proudly share a personal goal.
Volunteering reminded us that impact isn’t measured in numbers, but in moments of connection. Even if we help one young person feel seen and valued, that’s a breakthrough worth celebrating.
This sense of purpose fuels not just the heart but also long-term motivation to keep learning and growing.
The Cons: Challenges You’ll Face as a Youth Volunteer
While the rewards are fulfilling, volunteering also comes with real-world challenges. These aren’t reasons to quit — they’re opportunities to grow deeper in self-awareness and resilience.
1. Emotional Drain and Compassion Fatigue
Youth work can be emotionally heavy. Some youths face difficult home environments, low self-esteem, or academic pressure. As mentors, we naturally empathise — but that empathy can become emotional exhaustion if not managed well.
We learned the importance of self-care and boundaries. After intense sessions, we’d debrief with fellow volunteers or reflect privately. Learning to care without carrying is an essential survival skill for every youth worker.
2. Inconsistency in Youth Engagement
Not every youth shows up consistently. Some lose interest halfway through a programme, while others struggle with attendance due to external factors.
Initially, it felt discouraging. But it taught us a crucial lesson: progress is rarely linear. Every youth is on their own timeline, and our role is to walk alongside them — not rush their growth.
“Even if they take one small positive step, that’s still movement in the right direction.”
3. Time Commitment and Scheduling Conflicts
Most volunteering roles require regular commitment — often weekly or bi-weekly. For working adults like us, balancing that with family and career wasn’t easy.
We had to prioritise and plan ahead. Sometimes, saying “yes” to volunteering meant saying “no” to leisure. Yet we found that even a few consistent hours a month could still create meaningful impact if we gave our full presence.
4. Dealing with Misunderstandings or Resistance
Youth can be unpredictable. Sometimes they resist authority or challenge advice. Occasionally, they may even test boundaries to see if you’ll stay patient.
We learned not to take it personally. Resistance often hides fear, insecurity, or mistrust from past experiences. Through persistence and authenticity, we earned trust slowly — one conversation at a time.
This experience strengthened our conflict management and de-escalation skills, valuable in both community and workplace contexts.
5. Limited Immediate Results
Unlike corporate projects, where results are measurable, youth mentoring outcomes can take months — even years — to show.
Early on, this tested our patience. We had to redefine “success” not as visible transformation but as consistency, trust, and seeds planted.
The reward comes later, often when a youth messages you months after the programme, saying, “Thanks for listening when no one else did.”
Lessons Learned from the Field
After months of volunteering, here’s what we both discovered about youth work and personal growth:
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Empathy is powerful, but boundaries protect it.
To be effective mentors, we must care deeply without losing balance. -
Listening creates trust faster than advice.
Youths don’t need perfect answers — they need genuine understanding. -
Consistency beats charisma.
Showing up regularly matters more than saying all the right things. -
Every volunteer needs a community.
Debriefing with fellow mentors prevents burnout and builds shared wisdom. -
Growth happens in both directions.
As much as we guide youth, they also shape us — teaching humility, humour, and hope.
Who Should Volunteer with Youth?
You don’t need to be a counsellor or social worker to start. You just need:
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A heart to listen
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The patience to guide
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The humility to learn
Whether you join Youth Corps Singapore, Fei Yue, TOUCH Youth, or a local community club, volunteering is one of the best real-world platforms to practise what the Breakthrough Academy course teaches — connection before correction, empathy before advice, and encouragement before direction.
Conclusion: Growth for You and the Youth
Being a youth volunteer is both rewarding and refining. It stretches your patience, deepens your empathy, and hones your mentoring and communication skills in the most authentic way possible.
Yes, there will be moments of fatigue, frustration, and self-doubt. But there will also be moments of laughter, breakthroughs, and deep human connection.
At the end of the day, the greatest reward isn’t what we teach — it’s who we become in the process of serving others.
As we often remind ourselves:
“The goal of mentoring isn’t to change youth overnight. It’s to walk with them long enough until they believe they can change themselves.”
