At the recent RI Convention in Calgary, I learned a few key takeaways that may be useful to you.It was interesting to see someone wearing a Rotary shirt that said, "Once you are outside your comfort zone, growth occurs". In one phrase this seems to note our work as Rotarians.
I hope you find that in working with your club teammates that we must welcome change while supporting excellence.
The first takeaway was that clubs that are aiming to be successful tend to have their President Elect and the President Nominee in place early.
The second nugget was something that was reinforced: getting value for your membership is key.
Third, as the environment is our newest area of focus, our groundwork on healthy communities was the right direction to pursue because this is a concern of the emerging generation.
Finally, closer to home, as I worked through my club visits I picked up ideas and had interesting reflections. I still believe that every action within a club needs to be considered in terms of member experience, retention, and attraction.
In going forward I strongly encourage each of our amazing clubs to pursue and apply their visioning/strategic planning efforts, expand on the contacts and engage with local community partners (as we learned at the district conference), and seek to understand the needs of the emerging generation of leaders so that club programs include these considerations in order to attract them to service.
In the spirit of the four-way-test and our journey together - it was fun!
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1) Clubs that are aiming to be successful tend to have their President Elect and the President Nominee in place early. It was shown that these future club leaders get a decent amount of time to absorb the materials, think about their year of leadership, and collaborate with the current and past presidents. Rotary has plenty of studies and information to support any club, proof of what works and what does not – it’s just the time and focus it takes to implement direction, tend to the details, and have your club be a great reflection of your community.
2) Getting value for your membership is key. One thrives as a Rotarian by being intentional and it may not come from your club group. Adding to your network with a membership in a Rotary Action Group and participating in a fellowship or two is one way. It may include identifying skills you want to learn and pursuing this relentlessly, or joining a committee to lend your skills, even as a mentor. This expands your effectiveness and fills your Rotary world. I am certain that your deeper involvement will help you become a better leader and teammate.
3) As the environment is our newest area of focus, our groundwork on healthy communities was the right direction to pursue because this is a concern of the emerging generation. It can help us attract members, community partners, and deepen our impact as one of the most relevant groups in our community. This area of focus was on full display at the convention so look for future articles and opportunities. There are some emerging programs including an interesting citizen science initiative. While there are many project paths to choose from, I would like to think we can ensure that every 7090 club can pursue foundation support and grants, especially where clubs can collaborate on environmentally related projects together.