Delegation

 Hi everyone,  

Welcome back to another Best Buddies YLC Blog! We hope you all enjoyed the Valentine’s Day blog! If there is anything you want to hear from us, please share it in the comments below! 

We wanted to take today to discuss the importance of delegation as a leader. Oftentimes, when it gets to this time of the year, we find ourselves losing members in our school chapters. This can be a difficult time because the drop in numbers does not mean it is from the lack of leadership, nor the success of the chapter, but a multitude of reasons that do not always have an origin. 

When we find ourselves at a loss of general members, we must try to brainstorm methods to keep the involvement consistent year-round. One way to do this is by delegating different tasks to general members. To do this, here are a few tips on how to handle the drop of members.  

Before we get into delegating different tasks, let’s talk about what delegation is. Delegation is an effective way of leadership and allows for members to be responsible for their own decisions. You will assign work for your members to do independently. Before you delegate work, make sure that your members are ready for their responsibilities. This type of leadership style works partially as a trust system because you are not looking over all the little details of projects, but trusting that your team will get it done. Secondly, have deadlines, but also check-in dates. This way, there is the set expectation of when the project will be finished, but flexibility within and time to ask for help. Thirdly, be open-minded, things may go wrong at times, and you may need to step in, but trust that your team is capable of the hard work they are putting in. Let’s take a look at some ideas! 

The first is staying on top of your executive board responsibilities. If you are reading this as the President, do not fear reminding your board to keep up their responsibilities. They were picked to represent the chapter, and therefore must do their jobs! If you are reading this as an exec board member, do your best to follow your responsibilities. The board is set up to be flexible so you can help your other members out; however, at the end of the day make sure your job is being done. Finally, as a general member, feel free to offer help! Everyone loves and appreciates the help, and it might help you see what the responsibilities are and if you might be interested in applying for an executive position. 

A second option is creating committees. These could range from having a birthday committee, an event planning committee, a fundraising committee, to anything you want to see in your chapter. Although we know everyone in the chapter is important, sometimes general members may feel less involved at times. By having committees, everyone has a role and can work at their own pace. 

The third and last idea is delegating community projects. Try to think of projects and ways to get involved within your community. Step up and lead a project; be the change you want to see! Oftentimes, chapters can be hugely successful but feel separated from their community outside of the school walls. Maybe you could team up with another Best Buddies chapter in your state and host a shared fundraiser. Not only is this a great way to meet new people, but you will hopefully get two times the support! 

I hope this helps with any possible issues regarding losing members throughout the year! If anyone has any questions please comment below! 

In friendship, 

Sophie