LEADERS INSPIRE LEADERS

" Leaders make Others SMILE”-
Shelby Holland, GFWC Georgia President 2020-2022

“A leader takes people where they want to go. A great leader takes people where they don't necessarily want to go, but ought to be." -- Rosalynn Carter.

“Good leaders organize and align people around what the team needs to do. Great leaders motivate and inspire people with why they’re doing it." -- Marillyn Hewson
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"Leaders should strive for authenticity over perfection.” -- Sheryl Sandberg "

​​​Leadership is the ability to influence a group towards the achievement of goals". Leadership is not a "one size fits all" approach but a matter of adapting your approach to best fit a specific situation, follower or group. S M I L E is a guide of everyday leadership:

• Smile – Your smile is a powerful tool that can change the world. It brings hope, light, acceptance, gratitude and kindness to the recipient.

• Motivate – Your ability to motivate others is both a gift and learned ability. Sharing your excitement and passion can fuel the fire of action in those around you. What motivates you? Let’s share and motivate others to do the same.

• Inspire – Inspiration comes from the heart. It is the extra mile you go to show love and kindness to others. Don’t be afraid to share your feelings, disappointments, successes and those tender moments with others. It is the ability to identify with others that inspires us to achieve our next goal in every aspect of our club life and everyday life.

• Lead – In order to lead, you will have to learn. Learn to run a meeting, learn organization skills, learn time management, learn about GFWC and GFWC Georgia, learn the desires of your club members and learn from other’s successes and failures. Delegation is extremely important in leadership so learn to recognize the skills of others and allow them the flexibility to learn. Finally, learn to fail at times because we are all human – then learn from the mistake and move forward.

• Excel – Take your personal talents and learned skills and be the best leader possible. Commit to your members to care for them, communicate with them, and listen to them. Encourage them to be their very best recognizing that it takes all of our different personalities and talents together to make a Diamond Team.
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​How do we develop good leaders? Developing good members is crucial to developing good leaders
  • Be a leader that you would want to follow – You should always put yourself in your member’s shoes. Are they invested in the ideas presented? Is a new format needed or new ideas? Take a step back and observe what your members are observing. Don’t be afraid to make changes and know there are challenges.
  • Always be accessible – Listen to your members. The success of a leader is knowing when to listen and when to speak. You will have to do both, but you have to be present to do either.
  • Always maintain your composure – A cool and levelheaded leader will produce a positive, productive, and steady culture within the club. • Stay positive when adversity hits – Always stay positive and realize that setbacks aronly temporary. You set the stage of how circumstances will affect your club. Being confident and positive will go a long way in guiding your club in those tough times.
  • Make the mission bigger than yourself or the club – Inspire your club to reach far above their normal projects. Remind them of their heart for service and the difference made in the community. The relationships built while serving together are lifetime bonds. The impact on the lives of others is the motivation to keep us moving toward the goal.
  • Innovation – Encourage your club members to find new ways and new projects. Don’t be afraid to stop a project that is no longer successful. Share ideas with other clubs and collaborate on projects. Remember that the goal is to impact our communities and we are stronger together than separate.
  • Always be Honest and show Empathy – Honesty is the best policy is still a true statement. GFWC clubwomen are pillars of their communities who are trusted. Always stand for the truth and show empathy to others. Our hearts for service will lead us to do the right thing.
  • Diplomacy and Conflict – There will be times of disagreements among club members. It is extremely important to have the club’s Bylaws reviewed annually by a committee. The bylaws and standing rules are the guidelines of the organization. Be sure the parliamentarian is knowledgeable of Robert’s Rules of Order and present for elections and bylaw changes.
  • Leaders show Empathy and Humility – Don’t be the leader who is arrogant, entitled and controlling. See yourself as the same as your fellow club members – no more and no less. Show kindness and empathy to everyone. Everyone respects a leader who is willing to do any job within the club, no matter how big or how small. A leader will rejoice when her members excel and succeed. 
  • Identify Leaders – Make it intentional to identify leaders within your club. Suggest they attend district and state meetings to become familiar with GFWC Georgia. Budget funds for potential leaders to attend the annual LEADS conference. Training and excitement of the organization will inspire members to become leaders. 
Being the leader means setting the right tone and staying focused on the goal of the club members, knowing that your impact will have a lasting impact on others. 

Leadership  Personal Development Tools ​​

​• Assessment of your leadership skills can help with focusing on your strengths and challenges. For example, perhaps you possess the quality of humility, but are challenged with listening skills. Being a good communicator is one of the most important skills in being a successful leader. Consider a webinar or reading a book on improving your weaker skills.

• Development of presentation skills is very important.
               😊Learn to speak clearly and loud enough for people                       to understand. 
               😊Prepare a detailed agenda and follow it. Don’t                               leave  your script.
              😊Coordinate before the meeting with all                                             individuals on visual effects.
              😊Designate a host for all guest speakers and have                          their introduction prepared.
              😊Dress appropriately for the type of meeting.
              🤗Have gifts for guest speakers and special guests.
              😄Know your audience and prepare accordingly.

• Time management is extremely important. Plan and organize ahead of time. Know that each task is going to take longer than first anticipated.

• Set achievable goals for yourself and always have a vision. • Be Yourself with your unique personality and strengths.

• Be Healthy – Most women are so busy caring for others that they neglect themselves. Be kind to You. Exercise, eat healthy, Know you Normal and pamper yourself occasionally. You deserve it!!

• Delegation is one of the main challenges. As strong independent women, we like “to do it right”. Giving another member the respect to try the task and most probably succeed can be a difficult idea to grasp, but will come with rewards.

Here are some steps to Delegation:
😊Communicating the task completely with accurate and all required information.
🤨Explain the purpose of the task.
😃Agree on the standard used to measure success.
😉Grant authority to complete tasks.
👌Provide support.
😊Get a commitment from the member.
😁Communicating the task completely with accurate and all  required information 

Club Ideas
                 Activities will build teamwork and highlight members who are potential leadership for your club. These are a few ideas, but there are plenty more on the internet.

                      🙂Marshmallow Spaghetti Tower - Prepare 20 sticks of uncooked spaghetti, 1 roll of masking tape, 1 yard of string and 1 marshmallow for every team. Using these supplies, see which team can build the tallest tower. The challenge? The marshmallow has to be at the very top of the spaghetti tower, and the whole structure has to stand on its own. You can follow up with some debrief questions like: How did you work together to build your tower? Did you learn anything about yourself and your team members? Did one person emerge as the leader or did you all work together as a team? Did you have fun or was it stressful? How is this like working together to build the club? How can we work together to see great projects in our community? What are some of the elements of an organization that stands strong?

                😊Round Tables - This activity requires four tables, each set up with a different task. The tasks need to have separate steps that can be delegated among participants. A team leader is selected, who can only communicate and delegate tasks. Each table is timed to see how long it takes to complete the task. This is an activity that helps develop leadership and delegation skills.

​               😊Sisterhood - For this exercise, you’ll need teams of two, a blindfold, and several “obstacles”. Blindfold one member of the duo and task the other member to guide the “blind” person through the field of obstacles using only the words right, left, forward, and backward. As an alternative, hold this activity at a park or playground for a nice outdoors experience. This leadership activity promotes communication, listening, and trust. 
Other ideas include:
●  Collaborate with local high school clubs on projects to recruit           new members who are tomorrow’s leaders.
● Sponsor a community activity on Leadership skills.
● Prepare a webinar (YouTube Video) on leadership building skills     and share on your Club’s website, Facebook page, Instagram           and                other social media avenues. Engage your technical 

Club, District and State Officer Resources and Responsibilities:
  ●Identify all GFWC Deadlines/Awards/Contests.
● Highlight Community Service Programs and Advancement Plans.
● Review Bylaws – Job descriptions of at least executive officers. These are the rules by which a club is governed 
● Understand the Treasurer’s report and information on the club budget.
● Explore the benefits of being Federated.
● Know the organizational structure of GFWC.
● Learn how to start a club.
● Value the Club’s History and GFWC history– The rich heritage can help develop leadership and character.
● Follow parliamentary procedure with the Standing Rules – Processes by which the club is governed and Robert’s Rules of Order – Essential for running of a meeting.
● Embrace legislative involvement.
● Participate in Communication: such a weekly News and Notes. ● Plan and Prepare for meetings, events etc.
● Attending district, state and international conventions and meetings.
​● Set goals which are specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and challenging.