Sunday, September 22, 2013

You Know When It Is Time to Move On.

I do not know if you have ever experienced working with a group and noticed something has changed or shifted in its personality.  You cannot put your finger on it, and you ignore it or forget about it because there is so much to do and accomplish.

I have been coordinating a volunteer garden group of gardeners for almost two years.  I had been cautioned when I took over leadership that the last leader did not communicate well enough with everyone.  Thus, I focused on maintaining an accurate email and tree phone list, wrote a weekly update along with plans for the coming week, made sure that people were thanked and praised for whatever project they finished or started.  I asked for ideas, suggestions, etc. on the work ahead.  I wrote a monthly report for the museum, which the prior person had not done.  But since all the other volunteer groups write monthly reports I thought we should do so as well.

I even took over the work of purchasing plants and equipment through the museum's various accounts (which is a nightmare!), because my "co-leader" had been doing it and felt she could no longer.  I had asked this woman to be a co-leader since both she and her husband were much more involved in the museum than I and I wanted an insider to make sure we were connected to the museum and its various activities and that we had a reliable contact and I had a back-up when I was on trips and such.

This woman that I asked was a very hard worker but she was also a hard critic of others.  I ignored her criticism of others and tried to focus on what was working rather than what was not.

The group's size has grown and shrunk and grown over the months as most of these folks are elderly and find the physical work challenging and new members to the area decide to join and give it a go for a while.  We can have as many as 10 volunteers but mostly we are down to a small core of permanent loyalists. 

I have noticed in the last few weeks that some of the group are more reticent in talk and tend to work in a smaller group in areas of the grounds.  I try to ask questions of each person for input on how we were doing and for ideas on challenges.  One of the more communicative members suggested that we needed to get a fall schedule of projects formalized and she compiled a nice draft suggestion list.  I pulled this together and organized it for weekly tasks and added a few things that went with the plants and their growth habits as the cool weather began.

Then I took off on my two week trip leaving all else up to the co-leader.  When I returned I sent out an email for input on what was happening and did not get any response.  When I showed up on the day of our volunteer work , the few that were there had already started earlier.  I assisted where I could although no one explained what they had been done and what they were planting.  At the end of the work session I asked how things had gone for the past two weeks and where we were on the fall schedule and what had been completed.

My co-leader, without stopping in her walk back to the shed, said over her shoulder,  "A lot.  Just open your eyes.  Look around!"

I was a little dumbstruck as she sounded impatient or at the very least short, but I smiled and said, "Great!" but also realized that I was not going to be able to write an update for the week or the monthly report with this much 'detailed' information as she walked away. 

I also decided at that moment in time and with surprising relief, this group was ready for new leadership.  I was ready to move on to something else, many other projects, garden and non-garden, that are waiting for me and that are more in the gardening education mode rather than maintenance.  On Monday I am stopping by the volunteer coordinator's office and letting her and the Admin. Assistant of the museum know I am quitting.  I will not be able to meet with the group on our regular session as I have a bank meeting that morning, but on Monday afternoon I will email all the volunteers and let them know.  I will finish a plant inventory that needs to be done in the coming weeks.  Our group usually disbands at the end of October until spring, so this gives them plenty of time to re-group and me time to mellow out and quite second-guessing myself!

17 comments:

  1. A good place to stop.

    In spite of having done your best and tried to get everybody on board, you have me with resentment. That’s nothing new. It happens to all efficient leaders of voluntary groups who have a plan.

    The nature of voluntary groups is far more ad hoc and casual than good organisers realise. 'Muddling through’ is often the order of proceedings.

    Somebody in that group had the ear of a few others and, I dare say, there have been mutterings in the background.

    You put your heart and soul into the work, you made a good job of your tenure. Let that be enough.

    It’s always sad when others choose not to appreciate our best intentions and efforts. But that’s how it is.

    Move on.

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  2. that should be ‘met’ in the first line

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  3. There's just no pleasing some people.

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  4. too bad but I am a big believer in change as a part of life. Holding on when it's time to release can cause a lot of grief in any part of life. Seems like you know it's time to go and what the reason for the resentment, you likely will never know more than suppositions. Maybe the universe thinks something else needs you more and by that I don't mean a divine being just that balance that does seem to be out there and maintained

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  5. There is wisdom in knowing when to let go and move on. There is certainly no shortage of opportunities for volunteers out there so I am sure you will fill your spare time nicely.

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  6. You have been doing wonderfully. If they don't say thank you, I will. You will find something marvelously enervating to do when spring appears...where you least expect it.

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  7. It sounds to me as though you did all you could. Who knows what happened (or didn't) while you were gone? I think you are right to move on.

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  8. It takes courage and perception to know when to let go and move on. Good for you. Chairing a volunteer group is tricky at the best of times, you've earned your change of venue.

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  9. Good job and congratulations on knowing when it's time to move on to some other effort. With your skills, there should be plenty of organizations that could benefit.

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  10. Sometimes it's hard to give ourselves permission to "quit", "give up" and move on. The conscientious do so only after having given it their best. You are one of those.

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  11. There is always one who comes on like an unwanted boil. Sorry you got one.
    Be well and move on
    Hugs
    SueAnn

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  12. BTW, I only just now noticed the sun dial. It's lovely.

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  13. Once again your life parallels my sister's. She is in the genealogy society and she is just befuddled with the members.

    She is not the leader, but she has so much on her plate. She is the Treasurer, secretary, newsletter writer, organizer, etc...

    She asks for help and input and gets back very little. Sigh.

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  14. I'd be tempted to go into this and find out what the problem was. You say you ignore gossip and concentrate on the job,but you may not have been picking up cues that less focused and dedicated people were becoming resentful.

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  15. I'd be tempted to go into this and find out what the problem was. You say you ignore gossip and concentrate on the job,but you may not have been picking up cues that less focused and dedicated people were becoming resentful.

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  16. Sorry about the double posting.

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Take your time...take a deep breath...then hit me with your best shot.