Sunday, January 20, 2013
Yup, it's been over a year since my last post!
No way I will be able to catch up, but at some point I will try to fill in a bit.
My last post in October, 2011 was pretty accurate. I have had no time for blogs since then. Halfway through my year as Governor - having a ball. Things are slowing down a bit now, but still very busy.
Get everything you can planned and done by the October prior to your trip to the International Assembly. Serious. Then hang on!
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Playtime is Over!
I thought it might be of help to emphasize how fast things have gone and, to a much greater degree, how fast they will go from this day forward.
If you have followed my blog from the beginning you will see a lot of time has been committed to this journey. I will state that the time has been spent without complaint as I truly am enjoying the experience, but you need to understand that this is not like being a club president - you have to be able to commit significant time to this and it comes at you fast.
A brief look at my calendar.
Tomorrow is a meeting of our training team. We are working on the two February 11th programs, Pre PETS and Area Leadership. The two combined compose a full day of district training. It is the team's job to make sure it is a productive use of the club PE's time while fulfilling the needs of the district. This team meets frequently.
January is International Assembly in San Diego, CA.
February is Pre Pets and Area Leadership Training
March is PETS in Orlando and our District Assembly.
April is the District Conference.
May is the International Convention in Bangkok
July 1st the DG year begins. Mid month are the TRF and Membership Seminars.
July into October are the 52 official visits.
There is no rest between now and a year from now. It is going to be high speed and exciting. Keep in mind that should you decide to be, and if you are selected to be a District Governor, your busiest time will be from October to October, DGE to DG years. I am in close contact with our current governor, just completed with her official visits. She continues to reinforce that I should plan and complete every action possible prior to January because there will be no time after that. I believe her. It is October 25th and I am already pretty much out of time. So I pass along the same advice. Get everything done six months before you think it needs to be done. A year would be better.
Till next time!
If you have followed my blog from the beginning you will see a lot of time has been committed to this journey. I will state that the time has been spent without complaint as I truly am enjoying the experience, but you need to understand that this is not like being a club president - you have to be able to commit significant time to this and it comes at you fast.
A brief look at my calendar.
Tomorrow is a meeting of our training team. We are working on the two February 11th programs, Pre PETS and Area Leadership. The two combined compose a full day of district training. It is the team's job to make sure it is a productive use of the club PE's time while fulfilling the needs of the district. This team meets frequently.
January is International Assembly in San Diego, CA.
February is Pre Pets and Area Leadership Training
March is PETS in Orlando and our District Assembly.
April is the District Conference.
May is the International Convention in Bangkok
July 1st the DG year begins. Mid month are the TRF and Membership Seminars.
July into October are the 52 official visits.
There is no rest between now and a year from now. It is going to be high speed and exciting. Keep in mind that should you decide to be, and if you are selected to be a District Governor, your busiest time will be from October to October, DGE to DG years. I am in close contact with our current governor, just completed with her official visits. She continues to reinforce that I should plan and complete every action possible prior to January because there will be no time after that. I believe her. It is October 25th and I am already pretty much out of time. So I pass along the same advice. Get everything done six months before you think it needs to be done. A year would be better.
Till next time!
GETS and Zone Institute
Since my last post I had to prepare for and attend GETS (Governor Elect Training Seminar) and the Zone Institute held consecutively in Reston, VA. As you may recall, we are in Zone 34 which runs from Georgia down through the Caribbean and even the N.E. part of South America. We share a director with Zone 33 which is the eastern seaboard north of Georgia to Southern Mass. Last year we met in Naples, FL and next year we will meet in Hilton Head, SC. The purpose of GETS is pretty self explanatory, the Zone Institute is to bring us up to date on Zone activities and programs as well as worldwide programs such as the eradication of polio. There is also a heck of a lot of fellowship in the evenings, after the banquets, in hospitality rooms for each class. I have 28 classmates in our two zones and we really enjoy each others company.
One of the big deals of GETS was getting you ready for public speaking. All 29 of us had to present a two minute piece on What is Rotary, Who are Rotarians, what do Rotarians do, or a personal Rotary moment. I procrastinated and did not prepare mine till the night before. It came to two minutes, nineteen seconds which I assumed would be okay. Never assume. I crossed out some thoughts and abbreviated others at the last minute, sitting there waiting for my turn, and got it down to two minutes. My evaluations were pretty good but the important one, a formal evaluation by the pros, has yet to appear in my drop box. We will have to repeat that performance, or edit and perform anew, at the International Assembly next January.
One of the high points was meeting our R.I. President Elect Sakuji Tanaka and his wife. Mr. Tanaka spent time with us in our hospitality room two evenings and attended our class dinner. We all chipped in $100 to have our picture taken with them and raised $3K for Polio Plus.
If you look back to last year, end of September, first of October, you will see what was learned at GETS last year. Actually I guess that would be called GNTS since we were nominees. We had an additional day last year and I felt badly that the class of 13-14 did not have the same opportunity.
In addition to helpful training there were some ancillary meetings. As an example our PETS board met for an hour - which was not enough time. The annual meeting of the Caribbean Partnership of which all our DGEs are board members took place. There was a three hour session during our free time that went in depth into public relations. I think all DGEs and most DGNs attended. The room was packed.
One really neat plenary session was Celine Cousteau, granddaughter of Jacques, gave a presentation on her growing up on Calypso. Her expeditions have not ceased and she now specializes in how people relate to the environment. With photos and videos you can only imagine how interesting this was to all, and very relevant as many possible projects popped into Rotarian's heads, I guarantee.
I was gone an entire week, with my wife of course, and it flew by. And I wished there had been more time to learn even more. The more you learn the more you understand how little you really know. Another subject that we learned about was the International Assembly in January, and if I thought this week was busy, we were told you ain't seen nothing yet. Next January, in San Diego, CA I get the biggest, most intense training sessions yet, full time all day and into the evening. All 532 DGEs from around the world will be there. I am really looking forward to it.
Like any large program you come home (last night) pretty motivated with a feeling of confidence only slightly offset by the massiveness of the responsibility. What kind of governor will I be? Will I be prepared? There is no doubt I will be. Rotary has taken care of that. I am also very humbled by the support my district has given me to date. When your peers think you will be a good leader it adds a bit of pressure to not let them down, but it also adds a lot of confidence because of the support you receive. My job is to help clubs forward the Object of Rotary, nothing more or less. I have no ego that needs stroking. I see it as an opportunity to serve.
One of the big deals of GETS was getting you ready for public speaking. All 29 of us had to present a two minute piece on What is Rotary, Who are Rotarians, what do Rotarians do, or a personal Rotary moment. I procrastinated and did not prepare mine till the night before. It came to two minutes, nineteen seconds which I assumed would be okay. Never assume. I crossed out some thoughts and abbreviated others at the last minute, sitting there waiting for my turn, and got it down to two minutes. My evaluations were pretty good but the important one, a formal evaluation by the pros, has yet to appear in my drop box. We will have to repeat that performance, or edit and perform anew, at the International Assembly next January.
One of the high points was meeting our R.I. President Elect Sakuji Tanaka and his wife. Mr. Tanaka spent time with us in our hospitality room two evenings and attended our class dinner. We all chipped in $100 to have our picture taken with them and raised $3K for Polio Plus.
If you look back to last year, end of September, first of October, you will see what was learned at GETS last year. Actually I guess that would be called GNTS since we were nominees. We had an additional day last year and I felt badly that the class of 13-14 did not have the same opportunity.
In addition to helpful training there were some ancillary meetings. As an example our PETS board met for an hour - which was not enough time. The annual meeting of the Caribbean Partnership of which all our DGEs are board members took place. There was a three hour session during our free time that went in depth into public relations. I think all DGEs and most DGNs attended. The room was packed.
One really neat plenary session was Celine Cousteau, granddaughter of Jacques, gave a presentation on her growing up on Calypso. Her expeditions have not ceased and she now specializes in how people relate to the environment. With photos and videos you can only imagine how interesting this was to all, and very relevant as many possible projects popped into Rotarian's heads, I guarantee.
I was gone an entire week, with my wife of course, and it flew by. And I wished there had been more time to learn even more. The more you learn the more you understand how little you really know. Another subject that we learned about was the International Assembly in January, and if I thought this week was busy, we were told you ain't seen nothing yet. Next January, in San Diego, CA I get the biggest, most intense training sessions yet, full time all day and into the evening. All 532 DGEs from around the world will be there. I am really looking forward to it.
Like any large program you come home (last night) pretty motivated with a feeling of confidence only slightly offset by the massiveness of the responsibility. What kind of governor will I be? Will I be prepared? There is no doubt I will be. Rotary has taken care of that. I am also very humbled by the support my district has given me to date. When your peers think you will be a good leader it adds a bit of pressure to not let them down, but it also adds a lot of confidence because of the support you receive. My job is to help clubs forward the Object of Rotary, nothing more or less. I have no ego that needs stroking. I see it as an opportunity to serve.
Monday, October 3, 2011
September 2011
Another month has passed and the most significant things that took place was turning 60 and finding out I am going to be a great grandfather in April. Besides having a nifty birthday party I had trips to WI, CA and OH.
Rotary wise I had a meeting with a trusted fellow Rotarian and bounced some ideas around for the 2012-2013 year with regards to governor projects and awards. I am preparing for GETS in two weeks and also for International Assembly in January. There is quite a bit of work required behind the scenes to prepare. Little stuff but it adds up quickly.
I attended a webinar on District Grants put on by TRF that was helpful in increasing my knowledge and preparing for the role out of Future Visions in 2013.
The governor has rolled out her project "Honor Flight" and I am getting that information to my friends in the VFW.
This may have been the slowest Rotary month I have had since getting into the governor string - but that's okay as my business needed me to catch up there a bit so it worked out fine.
Zone in two weeks. Lots to do between now and then.
My next blog entry will be after returning from GETS/Zone Institute.
Rotary wise I had a meeting with a trusted fellow Rotarian and bounced some ideas around for the 2012-2013 year with regards to governor projects and awards. I am preparing for GETS in two weeks and also for International Assembly in January. There is quite a bit of work required behind the scenes to prepare. Little stuff but it adds up quickly.
I attended a webinar on District Grants put on by TRF that was helpful in increasing my knowledge and preparing for the role out of Future Visions in 2013.
The governor has rolled out her project "Honor Flight" and I am getting that information to my friends in the VFW.
This may have been the slowest Rotary month I have had since getting into the governor string - but that's okay as my business needed me to catch up there a bit so it worked out fine.
Zone in two weeks. Lots to do between now and then.
My next blog entry will be after returning from GETS/Zone Institute.
Monday, August 22, 2011
An Easy Month?
Not a whole lot to report. Been traveling quite a bit, two trips down, two to go. By mid September I will be back at it without interruption except for my monthly business trip.
The District Strategic Plan is moving right along. The first of the goal setting surveys are done and the results are so strong we may not need a follow up. I am going to work on that right after this post, actually.
We have had a couple issues come up in the district where certain positions have requested to be compensated. I will not mention what the positions are, only that they are time consuming and both have really strong arguments with lots of upside. But the question is, if we start paying people to do their volunteer work, where do we stop? Does is become a business? How much should we pay a club president? How about an Assistant Governor? The DG and I area in agreement that this is not a precedent we can afford to set. And like I say, both have a valuable upside, but where does it stop? And should we be asking money from one Rotarian to pay another, in the form of dues or advertising sales or donations?
With that segue, perfect I might add, we have a few Rotarians that have been trying to build a district business directory, without much success to this point, but it seems to be reviving. At the same time the software company that writes the database program used by seven of the eight Districts in Florida, has come out with the same thing, called R2R (Rotarian to Rotarian). This program interfaces with our existing database and is free to members or at a reduced cost for "upgraded" advertising, and a portion of the proceeds come back to the district. The District plan is more expensive, will allow advertising by non Rotarians but will also pass some proceeds along to the clubs. At this point I am in favor of the program our software company has but the Governor is going to sit down with the DGN and me and we will talk this, and the other item to decision.
The District Strategic Plan is moving right along. The first of the goal setting surveys are done and the results are so strong we may not need a follow up. I am going to work on that right after this post, actually.
We have had a couple issues come up in the district where certain positions have requested to be compensated. I will not mention what the positions are, only that they are time consuming and both have really strong arguments with lots of upside. But the question is, if we start paying people to do their volunteer work, where do we stop? Does is become a business? How much should we pay a club president? How about an Assistant Governor? The DG and I area in agreement that this is not a precedent we can afford to set. And like I say, both have a valuable upside, but where does it stop? And should we be asking money from one Rotarian to pay another, in the form of dues or advertising sales or donations?
With that segue, perfect I might add, we have a few Rotarians that have been trying to build a district business directory, without much success to this point, but it seems to be reviving. At the same time the software company that writes the database program used by seven of the eight Districts in Florida, has come out with the same thing, called R2R (Rotarian to Rotarian). This program interfaces with our existing database and is free to members or at a reduced cost for "upgraded" advertising, and a portion of the proceeds come back to the district. The District plan is more expensive, will allow advertising by non Rotarians but will also pass some proceeds along to the clubs. At this point I am in favor of the program our software company has but the Governor is going to sit down with the DGN and me and we will talk this, and the other item to decision.
Monday, July 25, 2011
District Strategic Plan
Just a fast update on our District Strategic Plan. We have finished the information gathering/where are we now portion and I have release a short survey to the committee to start setting goals. Surveys are due to be completed by August 7th. There may need to be a follow up survey prior to getting into the path planning.
TRF and Membership Seminars
July 16th our District hosted it's annual TRF and Membership Seminars.
The new District TRF Chair, who is also in charge of Florida PETS training and is a past Director of the Rotary Leadership Institute, took it in a new direction. Although this was the first year and there were some of those first time out issues, everyone was really impressed. In the past the TRF Seminars have been rather boring. I hate to say that but it is true. It was determined as necessary to teach club TRF Chairs and other leadership the nuts and bolts of the foundation, how to fill out forms (line by line)etc. This task was done in a lecture format. I am sure you get the picture. This year time the seminar was broken into three parts. The first introduced the committee to those present. Not physically, but made everyone aware of all the sub chairs and committees that are their to help their clubs. Then an EREY video was shown. It was only 8 minutes but it began the process of teaching the WHY of TRF, getting people to better understand the purpose. After this TRF Programs were discussed. Part Two was geared to club support and participation in TRF. It was in this section that all the forms came to light but rather than train folks in how to fill them out, the WHY was again addressed. The DG has approved the purchase of a software package that will allow for form tutorials on the district website eliminating the need to take up valuable seminar time with it. Part Three was a group "best practices" discussion. The DGN and I roved the audience with microphones to allow questions, comments and ideas to be shared. It was really a well thought out game plan and I am looking forward to the refinements that will take place between now and next year as well as a little debugging. It was very, very good.
Membership was also divided into three parts. The first was presentation by the membership chair. Our membership chair is an excellent speaker and easily kept everyone's attention. Last year we started on the long trail of changing the way we look at our members to try and get better retention. This year he is taking the second rational step down that path and will take the third step next year. Part Two was an ELI exercise. The group was broken down in to six smaller groups and all we assigned a task. I sat in on one group and I can tell you the thoughts and ideas passing around were nothing short of inspiring. Super idea to bring RLI style into practice during this seminar. It was a bit confusing as it was not well planned in advance. A lot of details were left to be done on the fly and everyone was working on the same task instead of different scenarios. Still, first time out, this was really excellent. Part Three was again a best practices session. You might recall that we used that for the first time at Area Leadership Training and it was a big hit. We are now introducing it into more events. There is a lot to be learned from the interchange of thoughts and ideas as opposed to lecturing on how we think it should work.
The TRF seminar was in the morning, Membership in the afternoon with a shared lunch. I think that worked well. Except for holding microphones during best practices, I had no part. That also was an excellent idea and allowed me to watch and prepare for the next training cycle as it will be for "my year" as it is referred to. We have lots of gifted speakers and presenters and I intend to use them next year. If you recall we were training for six hours at Pre PETS and Area Leadership last February. That is a long time for one person to try to stay motivated and I am sure my enthusiasm probably diminished as the day went on. Next year we will use the same format but involve more presenters so it is not too much for any one person.
All in all a very nice day. The evaluations showed great interest and high grades were awarded both programs.
That evening I traveled a little further south and attended the installation banquet for one of my AGs who is Club President this year. I was honored to present a pin for 47 years of perfect attendance to a Rotary friend of mine.
The new District TRF Chair, who is also in charge of Florida PETS training and is a past Director of the Rotary Leadership Institute, took it in a new direction. Although this was the first year and there were some of those first time out issues, everyone was really impressed. In the past the TRF Seminars have been rather boring. I hate to say that but it is true. It was determined as necessary to teach club TRF Chairs and other leadership the nuts and bolts of the foundation, how to fill out forms (line by line)etc. This task was done in a lecture format. I am sure you get the picture. This year time the seminar was broken into three parts. The first introduced the committee to those present. Not physically, but made everyone aware of all the sub chairs and committees that are their to help their clubs. Then an EREY video was shown. It was only 8 minutes but it began the process of teaching the WHY of TRF, getting people to better understand the purpose. After this TRF Programs were discussed. Part Two was geared to club support and participation in TRF. It was in this section that all the forms came to light but rather than train folks in how to fill them out, the WHY was again addressed. The DG has approved the purchase of a software package that will allow for form tutorials on the district website eliminating the need to take up valuable seminar time with it. Part Three was a group "best practices" discussion. The DGN and I roved the audience with microphones to allow questions, comments and ideas to be shared. It was really a well thought out game plan and I am looking forward to the refinements that will take place between now and next year as well as a little debugging. It was very, very good.
Membership was also divided into three parts. The first was presentation by the membership chair. Our membership chair is an excellent speaker and easily kept everyone's attention. Last year we started on the long trail of changing the way we look at our members to try and get better retention. This year he is taking the second rational step down that path and will take the third step next year. Part Two was an ELI exercise. The group was broken down in to six smaller groups and all we assigned a task. I sat in on one group and I can tell you the thoughts and ideas passing around were nothing short of inspiring. Super idea to bring RLI style into practice during this seminar. It was a bit confusing as it was not well planned in advance. A lot of details were left to be done on the fly and everyone was working on the same task instead of different scenarios. Still, first time out, this was really excellent. Part Three was again a best practices session. You might recall that we used that for the first time at Area Leadership Training and it was a big hit. We are now introducing it into more events. There is a lot to be learned from the interchange of thoughts and ideas as opposed to lecturing on how we think it should work.
The TRF seminar was in the morning, Membership in the afternoon with a shared lunch. I think that worked well. Except for holding microphones during best practices, I had no part. That also was an excellent idea and allowed me to watch and prepare for the next training cycle as it will be for "my year" as it is referred to. We have lots of gifted speakers and presenters and I intend to use them next year. If you recall we were training for six hours at Pre PETS and Area Leadership last February. That is a long time for one person to try to stay motivated and I am sure my enthusiasm probably diminished as the day went on. Next year we will use the same format but involve more presenters so it is not too much for any one person.
All in all a very nice day. The evaluations showed great interest and high grades were awarded both programs.
That evening I traveled a little further south and attended the installation banquet for one of my AGs who is Club President this year. I was honored to present a pin for 47 years of perfect attendance to a Rotary friend of mine.
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