By Massimo Ballotta, Rotary coordinator for Zone 14 and member of the Rotary Club of Feltre, ItalyPeople used to see my Rotary pin and ask me, “What is Rotary?” To be honest, I didn’t always have a quick answer. This is a problem, because surveys tell us that we only have a few seconds to capture someone’s attention and make an impression.I made it a goal to find a way to more successfully motivate people who approached me asking questions about our organization. I reached back into my experience to find stories and moments that had inspired me, and that had stirred up my emotions. These Rotary moments are what transformed me from a routine member of my club into a full-blown Rotarian. I became excited about the friendships I have made and the positive lasting change that I can make in my community.
Each of us has a story to tell
It begins with identifying those things that attracted us to Rotary in the first place. And then it involves remembering those instances when we truly felt the life-changing power of Rotary.There is a well-known saying that I like to repeat often. It is a fundamental phrase, and it is easy to remember:
“I learned that people forget what you said, they forget what you did, but people can never forget how you made them feel.”
It is in sharing our experiences, emotions, and passions that we create that feeling that people will remember. Sharing our Rotary moments are our best chance of motivating others to join.
This practice has value beyond new member recruitment
Sharing inspiring stories can grow Rotary’s reputation in our community. It can get partners excited to work with us.If we make it a regular part of our meetings, we also allow our members to relive and remember the excitement that brought them to Rotary in the first place. When we ask members to share their stories, we open up opportunities to learn ways they might have become dissatisfied with the club and might help us identify ways we can get them re-engaged. A big step in the growth of any organization is the retention of members. We need to instill enthusiasm and pride of belonging.
Diversity matters
We should also be deliberate about sharing our stories beyond our immediate circle. Don’t just tell them to your close friends and acquaintances. We should ask ourselves, who is missing from our club? Who should be here to make our club truly reflect our community? And then go share with them. The more diverse our clubs are, the stronger we are.We are People of Action, who together create lasting change in our communities. Rotary’s strength lies in our collective dedication to service and our conviction in our ability to tackle any problem no matter how big or small. But we can only do that with vibrant, growing clubs. Therefore, all of us have a responsibility to make membership a priority. And not just during Membership and New Club Development month.
The best shot we have at building membership is by sharing the things that excite us about Rotary, in the past, in the present, and in what we hope to do in the future.
