From this point forward I will attempt to make note of advice given me by PDG's. This past Tuesday Pam and I had dinner with some "Snowtarians", Rotarians visiting Florida for the winter, and this one happened to be a PDG from New York and two provinces in Canada. Besides the daunting mileage issues and border crossings, some of his clubs spoke nothing but French, and he, of course, spoke no French at the beginning. He always tried to deliver his speeches in French although everyone received a writen copy for when he made errors. But his effort was much appreciated.
His point was one we bring forward in our leadership training classes, although magnified. Always remember your audience when speaking. The differences are less dramatice here in Florida, more subtle, but I will keep that advice in mind moving forward.
Friday, February 26, 2010
Monday, February 22, 2010
I want to revisit the interview day. I told you how the chairman and some of the committee members showed up at my door with champagne, but I really didn't explain how I felt.
This was the second big moment in this journey. The first was the day I decided, after three years of agonizing over which path to take, to apply myself to Rotary. But I have to tell you, when I was actually selected in my first year you could have knocked me over with a feather. I was prepared to apply up to three consecutive years. Frequently, to this day, I think "Wow, I don't have to do that again." and this feeling of happiness and relief rolls over me. It is a truly special feeling and for me personally, it was verification that I had made the right choice. And the fact that the district got me involved immediately was very cool because I started feeling I was a part of a well oiled machine whose end product is good works for humanity. It's a tuff feeling to beat.
If you apply and are selected to be a District Governor, you are going to love that feeling!
This was the second big moment in this journey. The first was the day I decided, after three years of agonizing over which path to take, to apply myself to Rotary. But I have to tell you, when I was actually selected in my first year you could have knocked me over with a feather. I was prepared to apply up to three consecutive years. Frequently, to this day, I think "Wow, I don't have to do that again." and this feeling of happiness and relief rolls over me. It is a truly special feeling and for me personally, it was verification that I had made the right choice. And the fact that the district got me involved immediately was very cool because I started feeling I was a part of a well oiled machine whose end product is good works for humanity. It's a tuff feeling to beat.
If you apply and are selected to be a District Governor, you are going to love that feeling!
Sunday, February 21, 2010
I learned this weekend that another of my responsiblities upon becoming DGN will be to sit on the Board of Directors of Rotary's Camp Florida, a camp for groups of special needs children. Please visit rotaryscampflorida.org for a nice look at the camp and what it does. Sitting on the board for a year should be a very gratifying experience.
District Governor Nominee Designate
Beginning in August or September, 2009 I started asking questions of Past District Governors (PDG) about the nomination process and what I should know prior to taking part in it. In our District the Nominating Committee is made up of a representative of each Area in the Distrct (District 6960 has 11), a chairperson and the current District Governor Nominee, District Governor Elect and District Governor.
I was told I would be asked questions about Rotary, past present and future and one or two personal questions, and that all candidates would be asked the same questions. The actual selection criteria remain a mystery to me, as it should so it can truly be "Fair to all Concerned".
I knew the date of interview where the selection would be made was November 21st and understood I would be given a time slot to appear before the committee. As the time grew closer, also knew there were four others being interviewed for the position.
Thanks to the input of others, I made a deck of flashcards that contained facts and figures about Rotary and our district. How many clubs? How many districts? How many countries. The Object of Rotary. The Object of the Rotary Foundation. Foundation Programs. The Future Vision Plan. I skim read the District Governor's Training Manual (available online) and noted any points I felt were important to the job. All these things I reduced to my deck of flash cards which I studied, during cocktail hour most evenings. It was really a good exercise because I learned a lot I didn't know in some cases, and added depth of knowledge in others. But there was so much information out there and I had no idea what questions would be asked. Still, by the time my interview rolled around, I was the second of five, I knew I had a fairly well rounded knowledge of Rotary and I hoped that my Rotary and VFW resumes of experience would qualify my as a good candidate.
I was nervous, no doubt, when I walked into the interview room and introduced myself to the fifteen people sitting on the panel. I knew many of them through my work in Rotary but there were several new faces, too. I took my seat and waited as the chairman explained the process and then asked the first question. "What is the Object of Rotary?". I don't think I'm giving away any secrets by saying he asked that question because I am sure anyone considering this office would anticipate that would be one of the questions, I mean my goodness, if you don't know the Object of Rotary how could you fulfill it? But I have to be honest, I studied that particular item over and over and over again, it is quite lengthy and I wanted to commit it to memory, and even the night before I was still making errors when I tried to recite it. But that morning I nailed it perfectly and all my nervousness disappeared. I had aced the part that had been the most difficult for me. From that point on I just answered the questions that were put to me by the panelists to the best of my ability, being perfectly honest about any personal questions and supporting Rotary answers with facts whenever possible. When it was over, forty five minutes later, I thought I had done a good job. Maybe, just maybe I had a shot at this.
Our district has a tradition of toasting the winner with a glass of champagne. After the interviews are over and the committee has determined the Rotarian best suited to be the next District Governor, they drive to the candidate's house to personally give them the good news. They call the others.
As the day went by and my phone didn't ring I started getting excited. Could it be me? Could I have gotten the nod in my first attempt? My wife, Pam, was also getting excited. She is a Rotarian too and this was something that we could do as a couple, which was really cool.
Finally, around 4:15 PM my doorbell rang. I did a couple quick fist pumps, let out a deep breath and opened the door. There stood the Nominations Committee Chairman, a few of the committee members and a small cooler containing two bottles of champagne. I had been selected. I would be the District Governor in 2012-2013 and was now, officially, the District Governor Nominee Designate. I will remain that until April 10th, 2010 when, at the District Assembly, the membership will (hopefully) ratify my nomination and I will become the District Governor Nominee.
My first job after that was to officially relinquish all my job assignments in the VFW. I understood going into this that my involvement in Rotary at this level would require me to remove myself at several levels of the VFW. I have been a National Recruiter for 15 years, the Department of Florida Director of Recruiting and/or State Recruiter since 2002. Membership Chairman of my District and my Post. All these jobs I would have to give up to concentrate on my new Rotary position. These were very difficult emails and phone calls, but as of June 30th, 2010 I will hold no offices other than Post Member.
Since becoming the DGND the district has not allowed any grass to grow beneath my feet. I was given until International Assembly in January to appoint a Rotarian in each of the 11 Areas to be my Assistant Governors in 2012-2013. In our district this is a three year commitment and if they accepted they would be the AG for Membership and Service in 2010-2011, the AG for TRF in 2011-2012 and the AG in 2012-2013. I wish I would have documented this process better as it was interesting. There were some that didn't want to or didn't have time to take on that responsibility and time commitment, others that were very excited to be asked. By the middle of the International Assembly I had completed the task. I had my 11 Assistant Governors and I couldn't be happier with the selections. I have personally met all but one and they are a great group of Rotarians.
Another small detail that needed attending was to get professional portrait photos taken of my wife and I, separate and together. Luckily we have a Rotarian in our Area that is an outstanding photographer and did a really nice job of trying to make me presentable. I don't remember when the photos were due to the Nominations Chair for submission to Rotary International but I am pretty sure it was in December.
Our District runs a training seminar prior to PETS (President Elect Training Seminar) simply called pre PETS. Its mission is to instruct the president's elect and incoming AGs on items that are important do our district that will not be covered in our multi-district PETS assembly in March. So, as DGND I was expected to take an active part in presenting these items on February 6th, and I did. We have a District Trainer who is absolutely wonderful. She sent me PP slides of the entire program so I could work on my parts of the presentations and I think it came off pretty nicely.
Two weeks later, on February 20th, we held our District Leadership Seminar which was very similar to the pre PETS but geared for the Tri Level Assistant Governors. Again, as DGND it was my responsibility to help in the presentation to these future leaders - and again our District Trainer made my job easy by furnishing the presentation outline reflecting my parts so I could work on what I wanted to say well in advance of the meeting itself. The presentation lasted all morning and after a lunch break we broke into small groups. The incoming Assistant Governors met with the incoming Governor. The incoming AGs TRF met with the incoming DGE and the incoming District TRF Chair and my group, the incoming AGs Membership and Service met with me and the incoming District Membership Chairman.
Our breakout session covered some needs and strategies. We decided that after PETS, the AGs would determine who the membership chairmen of the clubs in their areas are going to be and begin the process of developing a relationship with them. We also decided to meet again, as a group, immediately following our District Assembly on April 10th.
Immediately following the Leadership Training Seminar I was invited to take part in a meeting of the College of Governors. The meeting was part reporting forum and part think tank operation and I found it very interesting. The Governor reported in detail on his year, goals that had been accomplished as well as those that may fall short. The DGE reported on the International Assembly, again in detail and his wife reported on the spouses sessions that took place.
That was yesterday so we are up to date. As things cross my mind that affect this page previous to this point or the two pages leading up, I will edit them. From this point forward I hope to chronicle my journey in more detail, as it happens. Wish me luck!
I was told I would be asked questions about Rotary, past present and future and one or two personal questions, and that all candidates would be asked the same questions. The actual selection criteria remain a mystery to me, as it should so it can truly be "Fair to all Concerned".
I knew the date of interview where the selection would be made was November 21st and understood I would be given a time slot to appear before the committee. As the time grew closer, also knew there were four others being interviewed for the position.
Thanks to the input of others, I made a deck of flashcards that contained facts and figures about Rotary and our district. How many clubs? How many districts? How many countries. The Object of Rotary. The Object of the Rotary Foundation. Foundation Programs. The Future Vision Plan. I skim read the District Governor's Training Manual (available online) and noted any points I felt were important to the job. All these things I reduced to my deck of flash cards which I studied, during cocktail hour most evenings. It was really a good exercise because I learned a lot I didn't know in some cases, and added depth of knowledge in others. But there was so much information out there and I had no idea what questions would be asked. Still, by the time my interview rolled around, I was the second of five, I knew I had a fairly well rounded knowledge of Rotary and I hoped that my Rotary and VFW resumes of experience would qualify my as a good candidate.
I was nervous, no doubt, when I walked into the interview room and introduced myself to the fifteen people sitting on the panel. I knew many of them through my work in Rotary but there were several new faces, too. I took my seat and waited as the chairman explained the process and then asked the first question. "What is the Object of Rotary?". I don't think I'm giving away any secrets by saying he asked that question because I am sure anyone considering this office would anticipate that would be one of the questions, I mean my goodness, if you don't know the Object of Rotary how could you fulfill it? But I have to be honest, I studied that particular item over and over and over again, it is quite lengthy and I wanted to commit it to memory, and even the night before I was still making errors when I tried to recite it. But that morning I nailed it perfectly and all my nervousness disappeared. I had aced the part that had been the most difficult for me. From that point on I just answered the questions that were put to me by the panelists to the best of my ability, being perfectly honest about any personal questions and supporting Rotary answers with facts whenever possible. When it was over, forty five minutes later, I thought I had done a good job. Maybe, just maybe I had a shot at this.
Our district has a tradition of toasting the winner with a glass of champagne. After the interviews are over and the committee has determined the Rotarian best suited to be the next District Governor, they drive to the candidate's house to personally give them the good news. They call the others.
As the day went by and my phone didn't ring I started getting excited. Could it be me? Could I have gotten the nod in my first attempt? My wife, Pam, was also getting excited. She is a Rotarian too and this was something that we could do as a couple, which was really cool.
Finally, around 4:15 PM my doorbell rang. I did a couple quick fist pumps, let out a deep breath and opened the door. There stood the Nominations Committee Chairman, a few of the committee members and a small cooler containing two bottles of champagne. I had been selected. I would be the District Governor in 2012-2013 and was now, officially, the District Governor Nominee Designate. I will remain that until April 10th, 2010 when, at the District Assembly, the membership will (hopefully) ratify my nomination and I will become the District Governor Nominee.
My first job after that was to officially relinquish all my job assignments in the VFW. I understood going into this that my involvement in Rotary at this level would require me to remove myself at several levels of the VFW. I have been a National Recruiter for 15 years, the Department of Florida Director of Recruiting and/or State Recruiter since 2002. Membership Chairman of my District and my Post. All these jobs I would have to give up to concentrate on my new Rotary position. These were very difficult emails and phone calls, but as of June 30th, 2010 I will hold no offices other than Post Member.
Since becoming the DGND the district has not allowed any grass to grow beneath my feet. I was given until International Assembly in January to appoint a Rotarian in each of the 11 Areas to be my Assistant Governors in 2012-2013. In our district this is a three year commitment and if they accepted they would be the AG for Membership and Service in 2010-2011, the AG for TRF in 2011-2012 and the AG in 2012-2013. I wish I would have documented this process better as it was interesting. There were some that didn't want to or didn't have time to take on that responsibility and time commitment, others that were very excited to be asked. By the middle of the International Assembly I had completed the task. I had my 11 Assistant Governors and I couldn't be happier with the selections. I have personally met all but one and they are a great group of Rotarians.
Another small detail that needed attending was to get professional portrait photos taken of my wife and I, separate and together. Luckily we have a Rotarian in our Area that is an outstanding photographer and did a really nice job of trying to make me presentable. I don't remember when the photos were due to the Nominations Chair for submission to Rotary International but I am pretty sure it was in December.
Our District runs a training seminar prior to PETS (President Elect Training Seminar) simply called pre PETS. Its mission is to instruct the president's elect and incoming AGs on items that are important do our district that will not be covered in our multi-district PETS assembly in March. So, as DGND I was expected to take an active part in presenting these items on February 6th, and I did. We have a District Trainer who is absolutely wonderful. She sent me PP slides of the entire program so I could work on my parts of the presentations and I think it came off pretty nicely.
Two weeks later, on February 20th, we held our District Leadership Seminar which was very similar to the pre PETS but geared for the Tri Level Assistant Governors. Again, as DGND it was my responsibility to help in the presentation to these future leaders - and again our District Trainer made my job easy by furnishing the presentation outline reflecting my parts so I could work on what I wanted to say well in advance of the meeting itself. The presentation lasted all morning and after a lunch break we broke into small groups. The incoming Assistant Governors met with the incoming Governor. The incoming AGs TRF met with the incoming DGE and the incoming District TRF Chair and my group, the incoming AGs Membership and Service met with me and the incoming District Membership Chairman.
Our breakout session covered some needs and strategies. We decided that after PETS, the AGs would determine who the membership chairmen of the clubs in their areas are going to be and begin the process of developing a relationship with them. We also decided to meet again, as a group, immediately following our District Assembly on April 10th.
Immediately following the Leadership Training Seminar I was invited to take part in a meeting of the College of Governors. The meeting was part reporting forum and part think tank operation and I found it very interesting. The Governor reported in detail on his year, goals that had been accomplished as well as those that may fall short. The DGE reported on the International Assembly, again in detail and his wife reported on the spouses sessions that took place.
That was yesterday so we are up to date. As things cross my mind that affect this page previous to this point or the two pages leading up, I will edit them. From this point forward I hope to chronicle my journey in more detail, as it happens. Wish me luck!
Making My Decision to Try to Become District Governor
It was in 2006 when I was first approached by a Past District Governor (PDG) who suggested I consider serving humanity as a District Governor in our Rotary District 6960. District 6960 is in Southwest Florida running from Palmetto to Marco Island and inland to Lake Okeechobee. In 2006 the district contained 52 clubs and about 2500 member Rotarians.
The idea of serving Rotary at a higher level was appealing to me but I had a conflict in that I was also being encouraged to run for State Commander in The Veterans of Foreign Wars after many years of serving at the local, state and national levels.
Since I became more active in Rotary in January of 2002, actually I should say since becoming a Rotarian since being a member or Rotary and being a Rotarian are two different things, this conflict became more apparent.
I enjoyed my service in the VFW and made, literally, thousands of friends and acquaintances. Since relocating full time from Wisconsin to Florida in January of 2002 it was expected that I would run for VFW State Commander in Florida - it had also been expected in Wisconsin but I knew my move was imminent so I did not - and, at that time, it was also my plan to run.
However, as I became more involved in Rotary I found myself drawn to the organization by the impact it made on local communities as well as those around the world. I accepted tasks like being President of my club and Chairing the District's Ambassadorial Scholarship Committee.
The more I did in Rotary, the less I could do in the VFW until, finally, it balanced out. And that's where I was in 2006 when I was asked to consider moving up in Rotary. I could do what I needed to do in both organizations but could not take one even one more thing - I was booked solid. It I were to become the State Commander in the VFW, I would have to step back in Rotary. State Commander is a full time job, on top of my full time job in the real world, there would be no time for Rotary beyond my club attendance. The reverse was also true. District Governor responsibilities would require me to give up my service to the VFW beyond post attendance. So I cruised along, maintaining this balancing act for three more years.
2009 was a difficult year for my manufacturing company as the recession took its toll. But as I restructured my company in the face of this new reality I also watched the effects of the recession on the world and, in particular, those that had little prosperity to start out with. Charitable giving started contracting and those that depended on it started suffering even more. The most basic needs of food, clean water and medical care, were being denied to more and more people from Florida to Nigeria.
The veterans I served all these years needed help also, but they did have somewhat of a safety net in the U.S. Government. Their most basic needs would be taken care of even though there were many serious breaches is their rightful benefits and entitlement that effected entire family units.
By the early spring of 2009, after having spoken to many people in both organizations I determined that hour for hour, my volunteer time would have a more positive impact on humanity if I spent it with Rotary. My decision was made but there was still the question of when.
One of my dear Rotary friends, from my Area but not from my club, had also decided he'd like to serve as DG for 6960. His club had recommended him in 2008 but he had not been selected, by a narrow margin of the nominations committee. I felt certain that he would be selected if he chose to run again as he had excellent credentials and few get selected their first year. I was advised to also put my name in that hat to get some name recognition that would hopefully serve me well and result in my selection at some point. I sat down and talked with my friend and he said I should go for it whether or not he decided to try again or not. I will not detail his comments but they were spoken as a true Rotarian.
So there it was, spring 2009. I took the notion to my club and they passed a resolution supporting me and suggesting my name to the District Nominating Committee.
My Rotary District Governor Journey
My name is Steve Schlueter. I am a Rotarian.
In 2009 I decided I wanted to serve humanity further through Rotary by becoming the District Governor of Rotary District 6960 in Southwest Florida. This blog will be an accounting of my journey.
It is February 21st, 2010 and I am the District Governor Nominee Designate - now that's a handful of a title. I was speaking to our District Governor Elect, Don Thomas, this morning and he mentioned one of my jobs this coming year would be to help provide job descriptions - A District Leadership Plan - for our district. To actually put things in writing to make it easier for those that follow.
That got me to thinking that it might be interesting to a Rotarian considering becoming a District Governor to be able to read about my journey, as it happens. So I will try blogging. I have never done it before and will probably make many mistakes, but my plan is to document my experiences throughout this three and a half year process. Wish me luck!
Since we are already 6 months into the journey, I will have to summarize what has happened to this point, so the trail will not be perfect. But I will do my best to catch any reader up to date.
Yours in Rotary Service,
Steve
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