January 19, 2022

January 19^th was the District 42 training planned by Division C Director, Daisy Wei, and myself. This training was enormously successful, with 250+ in attendance. Why?

The key for success was planning; this included getting the date fixed early, fixing on a relevant vision, and letting that vision drive every step!

Our vision was guided by the reality that clubs across D42 are really hurting for members. In fact, 87% of clubs in D42 have less than 20 members. But, 13 % of clubs have more than 20; in fact, these clubs are growing. What is the secret sauce? What are the Best Practices that make successful clubs in today’s environment of virtual meetings? We solicited questions from a pre-training survey over a month in advance, to ensure these concerns could be addressed by presenters.

We approached speakers and trainers from Presidents Distinguished Clubs that are thriving. Their experiences would be “tried and true.” We had a preparation meeting with all presenters and moderators more than a month prior to the training, to share our vision and get their buy-in. With Daisy’s guidance, we prepared and distributed the Best Practices Document and collected tips and tricks from these clubs. This lead time provided the presenters time to collaborate and get creative! All were assigned co-presenters. Some had never met and we challenged them to present together; others were club members who had fun creating and presenting their message. They were all outstanding!

We promoted this training intensely. Daisy visited almost every club in Division C, and I did a whirlwind tour of Division E clubs in those 2 weeks after Christmas. We asked right there for a commitment to attend. For some clubs, this was the first time a Division Director had ever visited the club! As a result, these two Divisions had remarkable attendance at this event achieving over 47% of officers trained in the one event.

There is no secret really. All it takes is a vision to guide, a plan to get there and some plain ordinary hard work! The presenters, Tech support and planners of this training did all three of these! Thank you to all! It is so gratifying to be part of a fabulous event. Because everyone was set up for success and worked hard, the whole event was spectacular!

Mary Schoendorfer, DTM
Division E Director