People
join community groups to meet people, to have fun, to learn new skills,
to pursue an interest, and to link their lives to some higher purpose.
They leave if they don't find what they are looking for. Citizens groups
need to ask themselves more often: What benefits do we provide? At what
cost to members? How can we increase the benefits and decrease the costs?
Here are a some ideas on where to begin.
Stay
in touch with one another.
Regular contact is vital. Face to face is best. If you have to meet,
getting together in someone's house is better than meeting in a hall.
Welcome
newcomers.
Introduce them to members of your group. Consider appointing greeters
for large meetings and events. Call new contacts to invite them to events,
or to pass on information.
Help people find a place in the organization. The most appealing approach
is to say, "Tell us the things you like to do and do well and we will
find a way to use those talents." The next most appealing is to say:
"Here are the jobs we have, but how you get them done is up to you."
Invite newcomers to assume leadership roles. If the same people run
everything, newcomers feel excluded.
Pay
attention to group process
Most volunteer groups do not give adequate attention to how they work
together. Decision-making methods are not determined explicitly nor
are roles, or healthy behaviours. Some groups make process a topic of
discussion by appointing a process watcher.
Discuss
the group contract
Set aside occasions when members describe what they expect of the group
and what the group can expect of them in terms of time and responsibilities.
This information should become part of your membership lists.
Act
more, meet less
The great majority of people detest meetings; too many are the Black
Death of community groups. By comparison, activities like tree-planting
draw large numbers of people of all ages.
Keep
time demands modest
Most people lead busy lives. Don't ask them to come to meetings if they
don't need to be there. Keep expanding the number of active members
to ensure everyone does a little, and no one does too much. Work out
realistic time commitments for projects.
Do
it in twos
Following a practice from Holland, we suggest working in pairs. It improves
the quality of communication, makes work less lonely, and ensures tasks
get done. Ethnically mixed pairs (such as English and Chinese) can maintain
links to different cultures. Gender mixed pairs can take advantage of
differences in ways of relating to men and women.
Provide
social time and activities
Endless work drives people away. Schedule social time at the beginning
and end of meetings. Turn routine tasks into social events; for example,
stuff envelopes while sharing pizza. Some groups form a social committee
to plan parties, dinners, and trips.
Provide
skills training
Provide skill-building workshops and on-the-job training. Simply pairing
experienced and inexperienced people will improve the skills of new
members. Training in leadership, group facilitating and conflict resolution
are important enough to warrant special weekend workshops.
Lead
the way! ->
Community
Organizing
The
Citizen's Handbook:
A Guide to Building Community in Vancouver
© Charles Dobson / Vancouver Citizen's Committee
