The Mystery of Free
Posted on September 14th, 2009 by Cynthia D'Amour
Darn!
Newspapers have struggled in Ann Arbor.
- The Detroit Free Press dropped to twice a week.
- The Ann Arbor News totally died.
- AnnArbor.com (replacement) is not my cup of tea.
The Ann Arbor Journal was a delightful discovery.
- Delivered once a week.
- For free.
- Interesting articles.
I was hooked.
- Thursday (delivery day) became my favorite day.
- Enjoyed greeting evening.
- Reading the Journal on my porch.
This past week that all changed.
- We didn’t get a Journal.
- In spite of looking in the bushes.
- And under the cars.
The implications of free were frustrating!
- I didn’t have a right to call and complain.
- No one would drive a replacement over.
- The free paper was a gift – not a commitment.
On Sunday I learned the rest of the story.
- James got home from Chicago.
- I complained about my missing paper.
- He told me he brought it in before he left. UGH!
Mystery solved!
Make me think of chapter leaders…Will anyone complain if your chapter disappears?
Filed under: Board challenges
Beautiful analogy.
Will anyone complain if your chapter disappears? Depends if the chapter is offering any value. And if they are offering value, doubtful they’ll disappear. However, I’ve seen some chapters that need to disappear. They are self-serving their leadership only. Sort of like the replacement that wasn’t your cup of tea.
Tea time anyone?
Thanks Jeff. Agreed re value as a guarantee of life for a chapter. It can be heard for some to hear that message.
[...] Cynthia D’Amour compared associations to newspapers (love the metaphor!) since many of the dailies in Ann Arbor, MI are shutting down. Is there still a [...]