Make Your Own Job
Make Your Own Job
As I've aged, I adopted this tactic more and more, and I will tell you, it's great! For one thing, you know yourself better than anyone else does, and so when you create your own job description, it fits you well. It is a wonderful way to be effective and collaborate with others who share your values and enthusiasms. Most of all, you can choose to do the things that make you happy, and work with those who are happy in their work as well. It is the best of all possible worlds.
Freedom and Happiness
When I read our SKCGS Bylaws and Standing Rules, I saw in those job descriptions a lot of latitude to fill the some of the needs of our area within the parameters of positions described there, and so when I felt ready, I stepped up. I would like each of you to think about how you can apply this in your own life. The freedom to be YOU and to improve your world, your society, your community.
Suffering and burnout does not serve you, and it does not serve anyone else either. If you feel trapped in a position that does not make you happy, consider talking to your team or committee leader. If you are that leader and are unhappy, speak to your President. Speak up privately, and give them time to find a replacement. When you feel ready, think about what work would make you happy.
Burnout
People who are experiencing burnout often feel that they can't step down, because what they are doing is essential, and no one else can do it! This is a trap. This is a trap because if you do NOT step down, of course nobody else can do it! It is your duty to leave a position that no longer fits. We are not robots, and can't work like one!
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| courtesy: Pixabay |
And, if you still support the mission of the society, your next step is to look at the needs of your community, and ask yourself: what you would love to do to to fill that need? Will you need a team to do it? If so, when you are ready, bring your idea to the Board, and describe your plans. Tell them how you will recruit your team, or if it is a mission you can take on alone, how you see the program progressing through time.
Or you may want to join a team already working together, and bring something fresh to it. More volunteers are almost always welcome, especially people who see the larger mission and how their job fits into it. Happy people willing to work make any group better. Leadership are used to people tossing ideas at them, and are delighted to hear ideas backed up by solid plans and the people-power to bring them to fruition.
Challenge = Opportunity
When we faced the pandemic, South King County Genealogical Society was lucky. We had active volunteers, and lots of enthusiastic Members who were willing to learn new skills. We had recently replaced our old Rootsweb list with the much more flexible Groups.io and had an existing (free!) Google Workspace for Non-Profits. We made these two platforms work together to enable learning, communication, meetings, trainings, a study group, presentations, and more.
And we had an experienced, skilled leadership team as a Board, who were very willing to gamble that a few of us could make virtual meetings happen. We did not know what we were doing, but it seemed to work, so we started! It was a lot of work, but it was also exciting to see new people show up to our meetings, to branch out by presenting to King County Library System patrons, and to network with other organizations such as historical museums, the local DAR, and other societies too.
Find the Helpers
Notice that almost all of the work of these organizations relies on volunteers. It is joyful work because all these groups were created by people who were making up their own jobs, which then branched out to keep meeting the needs of the community and each person's own need to contribute. This is what gives us a thriving ecosystem of collaboration as we build better culture.
Join us! Check us out at SKCGS.org, on Facebook, Twitter, and Groups.io. Or contact me personally: President@skcgs.org
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| Valorie Cowan Zimmerman |
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