Jesus Martinez-Almela in Spain
In this new blog series, I’d like to ask some questions to people from different countries, backgrounds, professions, and genders who have all one thing in common: volunteering. I hope you’ll get inspired by their journeys and take the leap into volunteering.
Notice: The positions, views and information contained published here are those of the interviewee and do not necessarily represent my views or opinions.
Jesús Martínez Almela is an Agronomist and Biosystems Engineer, Certificate Projects Director IPMA Level A, Former IPMA Worldwide President, and Chairman of the Council of Delegates. He is currently the 1st vice president of AEIPRO-IPMA Spain and chairman of the Spanish Certification Body for Project Management. He has been a consultant and trainer in managing projects, programs and project portfolios since 1988. During these 35 years of his profession, he has directed projects and programs in more than 40 countries on 5 continents for different clients, industries, and institutions. He is the author of several books and articles, granted international recognition. Jesus, he’s an IPMA Honorary Fellow.
How did you begin to volunteer?
While still a teenager, I committed to youth organizations, and I continue here many years later
Why did you continue volunteering?
Being a volunteer is serving others, sharing, helping, and learning from and with others.
How has volunteering helped you in your career?
Volunteering is a two-way path: you give and receive, although in most cases, you give much more than you receive; the amount does not matter, but the appreciation and sincere gratitude of the people you help with your volunteering work because are also helping you in that common effort. It is a difficult exercise really to synthesize a couple of cases…
One for example, training young students in a remote area of Peru interested in project management, what they appreciated most was that I shared examples about how to manage oneself to being able to manage, to lead others, Team building beyond the formal authority, I perceived in their eyes that as I was telling my stories, they nodded with gestures, they were empowering me, they appreciated the sincerity and trust.
Another case was in a very different cultural context, with seniors, already experts in complex topics and projects, in the Republic of Korea, beyond the language challenge. There, it is a cultural shock that the student, the listener, can participate and interact with the expert, the authority, and the trainer (that was me). I had to use a lot of stories about culture, philosophy, and anthropology, on the third day, some of them started to bring me some minor details, such as small sweets made from tea and similar, maybe because I commented something about it in some of my stories: people respond to you with small details, which are enormous indeed, within their limitations, it is the gratitude they transmit to you for how you make an effort to interact, to relate, to deliver the value you are looking for.
Would you encourage other people to volunteer, and if so, why?
Of course, I do it whenever I have the opportunity to do it. And why being a volunteer goes beyond reason itself, I can better share some reflection on the matter, of voluntarism, and this would be, first of all, knowing yourself and knowing how to handle yourself, leading by example, making things happen because you are there first and you motivate others, you help others to make it possible with you. Leading others begins with knowing how to manage yourself and leading by example. And also and above all when you act professionally on a voluntary basis, you do not expect anything in return, you only seek to contribute something, let's call it value or solidarity, or whatever you want to call it, contributing value to others without expecting a reward is the basis of volunteering, you are helping yourself, if later, in addition, a smile comes, a thank you, a show of gratitude, then welcome!
