Volunteer on the Run
Posted on October 14th, 2009 by Cynthia D'Amour
Was she right or wrong?
Here’s the story…
- Callie was excited to join the committee.
- A fairly new chapter member.
- Introduced by Mike, the chair.
The discussion started…
- Callie asked for a clarification.
- Melba rolled her eyes and sighed.
- “We’ve done this forever. I would think even someone as new as you should know all about it.”
This was the first time Callie heard of the topic.
- Mike took a moment.
- Gave Callie a brief overview.
- The rest of the team squirmed with impatience.
The conversation continued on…
- Callie offered an idea.
- It had worked for others.
- “What if we partner with other chapters that are complementary to us?”
Melba attacked again.
- “We tried that in the 1980s. It worked for a few years - until the other chapters didn’t bother to show up any more. We got the message. We haven’t asked them since. People can join our chapter if they want to participate.”
- Others made noises of agreement.
- Mike ignored Callie’s suggestion and moved the conversation on.
Callie had had enough!
- She was not giving up her night to be disparaged by other members.
- She could say nothing right.
- And they obviously didn’t want her there.
Callie grabbed her phone.
- Looked at an “incoming” message.
- “I’m sorry I’ve got an emergency. I need to leave right away. Thank you for having me here tonight.”
- Walked out the door singing in her head, “And don’t worry, I won’t be back.”
Callie only stayed for the first 40 minutes of the meeting.
- They couldn’t pay her enough to stay for the rest.
- She voted with her feet.
- (Yes, the only emergency was the time being wasted at the meeting.)
What do you think?
- Was Callie wrong to leave without giving the group a “real” try?
- Or was she right to move on?
- (Would you have stayed?)
Who was the real problem at the table?
- Callie with a low-tolerance for being put down?
- Melba for the harsh comments?
- Mike for his poor facilitating skills?
I put most of the responsibility on Mike.
- He did not create a safe space for new members.
- Did not facilitate the diversity at the table.
- Ignored problems rather than address them.
Who let him be chair without proper training?
Makes me think of chapter leaders…what kind of experiences do first-timers on your committees have?
Filed under: Savvy Leadership
UGH - I agree, I put a lot of this on Mike. As chair, he needs to take control. Callie will tell other people, no one will want to join this ‘click’ masquerading as a committee. I don’t blame Callie, she was protecting herself and her time.
The chapter needs some serious committee orientation - sounds like there needs to be a changing of the guard. Gives new insight to ‘term limits’ - we all need them, even though it is sometimes hard to find new volunteers.
I agree with lack of training Cathi. It’s so important to train our committee chairs as they tend to be the first line of contact with new members - much more so than board members.
Would you do term limits for serving on committees (like Melba) or just for chairs?
Cynthia