You must be comfortable giving orders and setting a schedule. If there are discrepancies of opinion, it is up to you to make the final decision. You also need to have the confidence to hold your club members accountable to the rules of the club and to deadlines like fee payments.
When someone comes to talk to you about an issue, take them seriously. If you don’t have time to address it right then, let them know. Tell them you’d rather talk about it later when you have more time because you really value what they have to say. The positive interaction of all your club members will create a successful club. Create a democratic decision-making process, rather than overriding opinions of others.
Change up the style of the meeting and the meeting spot. Take time to do purely fun activities with your club members like having a movie or game night or volunteering together. . This will help create friendships within the club. Bring snacks to meetings and take time to play games. Kicking off meetings with an ice breaker can be a good idea.
This mission statement should be short and simple. Post it somewhere in your meeting area, and remind members of the statement at each meeting. This will help you club stay defined and improve, no matter what type of club it is. Also, this will give potential new members an accurate idea of what your club is. If you are starting a new school club, find out how this process has to be organized at your school. Many clubs require a teacher/staff member advisor and signatures of students who would be interested in joining.
If you’re not associated with a school, you may want to consider making your club a non-profit. You should only consider this if your club is raising tens of thousands of dollars per year as this will require significant paper work and cost money. But long-term it can help with avoiding any taxes down the road on income the club generates. Consider fundraising. Activities like a car wash, selling products, or simply starting a donation page can help raise money for your club. You can also charge membership dues and fees that are used to fund the club.
You may also make ongoing criteria that are necessary to remain a member of the club, such as regular meeting attendance and participation in events or a certain GPA if you are associate with a school. This will also ensure that you have an active club.
You’ll need marketing. You may want a member of the club devoted to this, but as president this will also be your responsibility to make sure the club is growing. Create a website. This allows potential members to read about your club and contact you with interest. Hold open-house events. Advertise events for potential members to come and see what your club is all about. This is a great way to vet potential members and also showcase what your club can do for them. Ask current members to recruit. They are likely to have circles of friends with similar interests.
Listen to their ideas, and let people volunteer for tasks they are interested in. Delegating tasks and responsibilities will keep members engaged and invested in the club. [6] X Research source You’ll need a treasurer, a secretary, a schedule manager, and a membership manager.
Before each meeting, plan what you will talk about. You should create a meeting agenda, where you outline what is going to be discussed in the meeting and who is going to be speaking on the topic. If you want other officers to speak at a meeting, make sure you discuss it with them before the meeting.
You should then have someone delegated to take meeting minutes, or notes on the meeting. This could be you or someone delegated to be the minute-taker. You should review the meeting minutes from the last meeting at the beginning of the meeting and revisit any issues or concerns that were not addressed in the previous meeting. You should then discuss each item on the meeting agenda. Allow for discussion and debate between club members but try to reach a consensus on each issue and move efficiently through each item. At the end of the meeting, you should have an official “end”. You may say, “I now end this meeting” or “This meeting is now over. "
Social media is a quick way to send information or invitations to events. Send out e-newsletters with club content, meeting notes, and upcoming events.
