If you’re leading a volunteer group, did you ever get frustrated with the amateurism? Sloppiness, cheapness, jerry-rigged, make-do, shoddiness. It’s the “good enough” attitude. And yet, most of the members of your board and many of your volunteers likely possess rich, professional skills and expertise. They would never settle for “good enough” in their businesses, for their customers, in their own homes.

Are you playing sandlot ball with bench full of pros who are just sitting on their…gifts?

It’s time to raise the bar. You want your volunteers to bring their ‘A game’ then lay out those expectations.

Of course, the first objection you’ll hear is that ‘we don’t have the money’. If that guy said that to his boss, he’d be hitting the bricks…either to raise the money, or to get another job. But somehow, on a volunteer board, we all just nod passively, as if accepting our group’s impoverished  fate.

Of course you don’t have the money. But what would you do if you did have the money?

What would you attempt if you knew you could not fail?

How would you equip and deploy your leaders to fulfill the purpose of your organization, rather than wasting their time approving the minutes of the last meeting?

That’s the concept of Affinity Connection…we bring professional quality marketing, development and administrative services to your organization. Call us today [800-598-4050] and we’ll not only show you how to get your pro players into a professional game, but how to do it at no risk to your organizational bank account.

Life’s too short to be the chairman of the ‘just gettin’ by‘ board.

Your organization has a crucial purpose, but did you ever feel so overwhelmed with the mechanics of making it happen that nothing seems to happen? Most leaders get swamped in the details. Not only does the leader and the organization suffer, but so does the leader’s family.

What would happen if you could focus on your core competency, and leave the rest to experts?

That’s the idea behind Affinity Connection. Whatever your purpose, it’s probably not database management, website development, content management, writing and editing, printing and publishing or donation processing.

What if you could hand that off to someone else…someone who’s been doing it for years, for hundreds of clients? Then you could start leading like you’ve been meaning to, right?

Contact Affinity Connection and we’ll show you how it works within your existing budget.

Although your organization may have a thousand members or more, from the perspective of any one member it’s much smaller. And that’s a good thing.

To each member, your organization is comprised of a small cluster of friends, who share an experience. While there may be some intermingling across clusters, for the most part, your organization is that cluster.

Because of this phenomenon, ask yourself: “What does the organization provide to make the life of that cluster better? Are you the network that connects them, the story-teller that reminds them of great times, the coach that inspires them toward worthy goals together?

If you can enhance the life of the cluster of friends, you strengthen your group.

Alumni/member updates, the staple of every group newsletter and website, often contain seeds of stories that your members want (and need) to hear…narratives that advance the purpose of your group, and strengthen relationships.

Example: A midwestern sorority alumnae group that Affinity Connection serves recently received an update from a woman who briefly mentioned an award she had won, and a reunion of “sisters” she had attended. One of our Affinity Connection writers, intrigued, contacted the woman who returned the call, but said she only had a minute because she was quite busy. Twenty minutes later, our writer apologized for the length of the call only to hear that the woman had plenty of time.

Result: A brief “update” turned into a 600-word story that highlighted the networking value of her connection with the group, and even praised the group’s newsletter as a priceless tool for reconnecting long-lost relatives. Her vivid description of the reunion packed emotional power: “We sat and had dinner with wine before the snow started to come, and some had to leave. The rest sat in front of the fire and talked for hours, until we were exhausted and had to go home.”

Affinity Connection staff then incorporated this story into a fundraising letter.

Lesson: Listen, and let the lives of your members’ tell the story of your organization.