Meet Dean Burton…

Dean Burton is a WordPress freelancer currently living in Spain and was Professionals doing good’s first remote volunteer. We have virtually met with Dean at the end of his volunteering period with us to learn more about his experience of helping out from home.

Dean, tell us a bit about yourself…

Before setting up as a WordPress freelancer, I worked as a Homelessness Support Worker in the UK where I worked with vulnerable adults who were experiencing homelessness in the City of Bristol. My career change came when I began creating my own projects using WordPress just over two years ago. I loved learning the ins and outs of WordPress and enjoyed getting stuck in code. From there I took on small WordPress projects, and eventually found myself working with consultants, small businesses and other freelancers whom I was helping to succeed online with WordPress!

Why did you decide to volunteer from home?

I’d always volunteered in various services in England, mainly in the housing sector and I loved it. When I started to work online, I missed volunteering and I started looking for an organisation I could volunteer with that would fit in with my new work-from-home lifestyle. I didn’t have to do much searching before Luisa found me!

What did you enjoy the most about the experience?

Volunteering remotely with Pdg was a really great experience, Pdg was always very grateful for my help. It was great to interact with the many people involved in the project, from the website host to editors of the content. Everyone was really happy to help whenever I needed a hand or came across an issue. It also gave me valuable experience working on a remote team. Great communication and trust was essential, especially when you’re making big changes to a non-profit’s website!

What would be your advice to professionals willing to volunteer remotely?

As I said above, great communication is key when working remotely. Make sure to keep in touch regularly and speak out if you have any doubts. It’s a great experience and is very rewarding knowing that the work you do will impact so many other people. On top of that, you’ll get to work with a really friendly bunch of people (Luisa couldn’t be friendlier). Go for it!

If you’d like to have a unique experience while making a difference like Dean did, contact Professionals doing good for more information at [email protected].

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