Mid-Course Correction - Chapter Leaders Playground

Mid-Course Correction
by Cynthia D'Amour, MBA

Have you ever launched a project and thought you had no choice but success?

Everything was carefully planned.
You thought you covered your bases.
Bounced ideas off others who also thought everything was good.

To discover to your amazement, it's not working the way you thought it should?

Hello, my name is Cynthia and I am recovering from being right.

About two months ago, I came up with the ideas for The Lazy Leader Transforms America - One Volunteer at a Time Tour.

Got a team of volunteers together to vet the concept.

It is 10-week, 30-city tour this fall with big goals:

To train 5,000 leaders
And impact more than 250,000 volunteers

In order to make the goals, we need to train 100+ leaders at each stop.

My brilliant idea...

Have 3-4 local chapters serve as a host team for their community.

It would be a great way for local chapters to network into their community.

And make putting 100+ people in the room easier to do.

Sounded great on paper...not so good in real life.

We've got lots of leaders who talk about wanting to host a stop - but the need to collaborate with all those extra chapters is a bridge too far.

So I stay right?

It will be easier to fill the room.
It's great for local chapters to work together.

Or do I shift the local host team requirements to what my volunteers are asking for?

If I was coaching a volunteer leader, it would be a no brainer.

I would ask the following...

What do you want to achieve?
What really matters?
Are your actions a volunteer magnet or a volunteer repellent?

As I work my way through my questions, I realized I need to let go of being right - and focus on getting the work done.

So we are shifting gears.

Local host teams who can show us they will be able to fill the room will be given priority - whether it's one chapter with a great plan or a bunch of chapters working together.

(Learn how your chapter can become a host team at http://www.LazyLeaderRoadShow.com)

As leaders, we need to monitor our volunteers as well as the progress our projects are making.

When your team hits a log jam, you need to figure out what's going on.

Is this simply a volunteer management issue?
Or do you perhaps need to change how you are getting work done?

If your chapter isn't getting the results you want, it's time to start asking some hard questions.

For example...

If you don't have folks showing at chapter meetings - is it because they are all busy?

Or because the meeting experience needs some work?

Here's another...

If you don't have new people eagerly stepping up to volunteer in your chapter, is it because no one volunteers now?

Or perhaps because your leaders need to learn new ways to work with volunteers?

In your chapter, where are you falling a bit short? Are your leaders focused on being right about how they do the work?

Or are they trying new ways to make sure the work gets done?

How does your board monitor and adjust when mid-course corrections need to happen?

Cynthia D’Amour, MBA, founder of the Chapter Leaders Playground is the author of several books including The Lazy Leader's Guide to Outrageous Results and is a frequent speaker at leadership events.

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