[Nationalharbor] Information for NFB Leaders

[Michelle Clark]

This article from the Braille Monitor is kind of lengthy, but it speaks
volumes about leadership; some of which we all can use to move forward with
the  Chapter. I  hope you enjoy it. I  continue to say "It's about what the
NFB can do for blind persons in Prince Gorges County"!

 

Michelle

 

 

Braille Monitor                                              June 2014

 

Driving the Affiliate: Some Musings of a Former Affiliate President

by J.W. Smith

>From the Editor: J. W. Smith is the immediate past president of the National
Federation of the Blind of Ohio, and those who regularly attend the national
convention will recognize his name as one of the people who has headed our
membership recruitment effort. He joined the NFB in the early 1990s and
quickly found his way into leadership. Here are some of his observations
about things to do and things to avoid in being an affiliate president in
the National Federation of the Blind:

I have been fortunate to have a variety of leadership opportunities
including as a professor in the classroom, a committee chair, an
administrator, a church choir director and youth leader, and a father and
husband. Most of my leadership opportunities have been within the context of
my university life, at least since 1983. I can honestly say, however, that
serving as the president of the NFB of Ohio from 2008 to 2012 was the most
satisfying and enriching leadership experience of my life to this point. For
the past year or so I have been thinking about some of my experiences from
those four years, and I thought it might be helpful to share some of my
musings and advice for those currently in leadership in our movement and
perhaps those thinking about it at the affiliate level. 

I recognize that every situation will be different in opportunity and
ascendancy to the affiliate presidency, and it may go without saying, but I
think it really does need to be emphasized that each leader should and will
bring his or her own uniqueness to the position. Your story may be different
from mine, i.e., I had the privilege and challenge of following one of our
longtime leaders in our affiliate and at the national level. It was clear to
me and probably to most anyone else in our affiliate that Barbara Pierce
would be a hard act to follow and that I had very big shoes to fill.
Nevertheless, I welcomed the opportunity and began with what I think is the
key point for effective leadership:

Make sure they know who you are and how you plan to lead. 

Even though I had been first vice president in our affiliate for fourteen
years, it was essential that I reintroduce myself to our membership and
establish my leadership plan early on. In fact, I received a call shortly
after being elected. The person on the other end of the phone was one of our
relatively new board members. Although I had run unopposed, she still felt
that she needed to know who I was and what my plans for the affiliate were.
With this in mind and because I was sure that she was not the only one who
had questions, I took the opportunity to answer her questions in my first
president's column in our newsletter. Here is in part what I said: 

Who Am I?

I am a father and a family person, and I love my wife and two daughters with
all my heart. I've been married since 1986, and because of my wife Regina I
am who I am today. She keeps the home fires burning, provides stability, and
allows me to travel and do what I feel I've been called to do. She has
always been a quiet, reserved individual who detests the limelight, but I
think the statement "still waters run deep" best characterizes her
personality and her perspective on life. Through the years you've read much
about my daughters Ebony and Joshelyn. Ebony is in her first year at Ohio
University, majoring in interior design, and Joshelyn is in her first year
of high school, majoring in anything she can get into. These women are the
joy of my life and the center of my world. 

I am a fighter and a futurist. I was a wrestler in high school, and I had a
reputation for being tenacious and one who fought till the bitter end. I
will bring that same tenacity to the office of president. I will fight for
what is right for blind Ohioans, and I will fight for those who either have
lost their fight or don't feel empowered to fight. I don't intentionally go
looking for fights, but I am a futurist in that I like to see the big
picture, and I like to move the ball down the field. I love to play chess
and checkers, and, as you know, to be successful at those games, one must
anticipate as many future moves as possible for both oneself and one's
opponent. My futuristic tendency allows me to be farsighted, trying to be
proactive rather than reactive. 

Finally, I am a performer, a professor, and a partner. By performer I mean a
musician, public speaker, and preacher. I've been a professor at the
university level since 1983 and since 1993 at the Ohio University, where I
teach in the School of Communication Studies. By partner I mean I'm a team
player, and I have no interest in being a Lone Ranger leader or dictator.

What Do I Bring to the Table?

I bring continuity and commitment. I want to continue the consistency that
our movement in Ohio has enjoyed through the years. As first vice president
since 1994, I have been a part of that consistency, and I want it to
continue. I want to ensure that the NFB of Ohio is a place of stability and
strength and that our positions are communicated effectively and
persuasively. I want to continue our presence and prowess in the disability
community in general and the blindness community in particular. We have
established a reputation for integrity and credibility and the ability to
get things done thanks to Barbara Pierce and Eric Duffy, and I want to keep
that going. 

I am committed to our philosophy and principles. We are changing what it
means to be blind every chance we get, and I'm committed to the idea that
blind people can do anything they want to do with proper training and
opportunity. I've been a Federationist since 1990, and I've never been more
committed than I am today. I attended my first national convention in
Charlotte, North Carolina, in 1992, and I made up my mind then that I would
give my life to this movement, so I am here for the duration, and I'm
committed to our programs and our policies. My leadership style may be
different from Barbara's, but my commitment to all that is the NFB of Ohio
will be the same. 

I bring education and enthusiasm. By education I mean both formal and
informal. I don't want to be snobbish here, but I think that I have been
able to use my years of formal education effectively in the real world. My
formal education has taught me to be a facilitator and a problem solver. I
think these skills will come in handy in this new job. I am enthusiastic
about the capacity of blind people to do anything in life they want to do.
I've traveled a great deal, and I've met a lot of people. In short, I have
had and continue to have an exciting life that I think allows me to convince
other blind people that they can have the same kind of experience. Research
demonstrates that communicating enthusiastically and energetically can be
contagious. Because I believe in this movement and the limitless capacity of
blind Ohioans, I won't have any problem communicating all things NFB-O
enthusiastically and energetically. Of course I will want to make sure that
this excitement and enthusiasm are balanced by substance and purpose. 

I bring organizational skills and an opportunity-friendly leadership style.
I value organization and efficiency, and I take great pride in putting it
all together. I also enjoy creativity and innovativeness. It's often
difficult to keep the interest of this new generation, but I think that, as
a movement and organization, we must try. My predecessor has made this job
easier for me because of her meticulous attention to detail and superb
organizational skills. I want to build on those and add my own creativity. I
am one who likes to delegate tasks, and you might say that I enjoy
discipling others. Discipleship requires time and commitment and a
willingness to step in and not just pull people along but walk with them
every step of the way. I want to give our members opportunities to work in
our movement, but I want to make it clear that I will expect them to seize
those opportunities and be positive contributors to our purpose and mission.
For example, I want committees that get things done, and I want an infusion
of new blood and faces. 

That's who I am and what I believe I bring to this office. I am not perfect,
and I will depend on the efforts of my board of directors and other leaders
in this organization to ensure our success as a family. This is a "we"
operation, and we need as many committed individuals as possible to help
make our collective strength that much more evident. For the next two years
I will try to be the best CEO I can be. I will try to guide with love and
affection and genuine concern for all of you. I pledge to be the best
president I can be. I pledge to continue our success, to be committed to our
philosophy and programs, to educate others about who we are and what we
want, and to provide opportunities for leadership and input that will be in
the best interests of the NFB of Ohio. Together we can make it work, and I
might add, work very well. 

That is what I said in my letter to the colleague who wanted to know who I
was and my plans for our affiliate. You've probably heard the old saying
"people don't plan to fail; they just fail to plan." I believe that
effective affiliate presidents must have a plan and must clearly identify
who they are and how they plan to implement their goals and objectives. 

Expect and Learn from Criticism.

Aristotle once said, "There's only one way to avoid criticism: do nothing,
say nothing, and be nothing." If you are not prepared to deal with and learn
from criticism, you should reconsider taking on this leadership opportunity.
Even though you might think that your plan and approach are flawless and
beyond question, you will quickly discover that there is something to be
said about meaningful input from others in the affiliate. It's important
that you identify those you respect and trust and encourage them objectively
and constructively to critique as many of the aspects of the affiliate as
possible, including your own leadership. 

One of the first things I did was to appoint an ad hoc committee charged
with evaluating as many aspects of our affiliate as possible and letting me
know what people were thinking about what we were doing or should be doing.
At board meetings I tried to set a tone that encouraged constructive
feedback, and I routinely communicated with my officers to ascertain their
critique of how we were doing as a leadership team. No one likes criticism,
especially when it is intentionally hurtful and harmful, but you need to
have a thick skin when it comes to accepting criticism as an affiliate
president. I think effectiveness in this area begins with an overwhelming
willingness to do the job. In fact, Dr. Jernigan often said, "To be
president, you have to want the job." In my mind, if you really want the
job, you will be willing to stay in the kitchen even when the heat and fire
of criticism gets hottest. 

Build a Team and Earn and Cultivate Trust.

Barbara Pierce used to refer to aspects of this one as "keeping your board
with you." Leadership does not mean that you have all the answers or that
others expect you to do so. It does mean that you are willing to work with
others to find solutions to the problems related to making life better for
blind people in your affiliate and your state. As I said earlier in this
article, I value delegating and appreciating. I made up in my mind early on
in my presidency that I wanted each board member to have a task that he or
she was committed to and that I would find every opportunity to validate and
appreciate those efforts. There are different leadership styles, so you
should find the one that works best for you. I sought to have the most
constructive and productive team or board possible. In my case, our
affiliate has always enjoyed relative peace, harmony, and goodwill, so it
was incumbent upon me to tap into that reservoir of goodwill and
productivity. 

Trust is another commodity, however. It must be earned and maintained. We
often give our affiliate leaders a great deal of trust. As leaders we should
never abuse that trust or use it in a way that is counterproductive and
poisonous. When you boil it all down, because we are essentially a volunteer
organization, trust and goodwill are the most significant elements we bring
to the table, especially as leaders. Let me be clear here: if something
occurs that has the potential to damage the trust between you and members of
your affiliate, do all that you can to address it, learn from it, and build
on it. Recognize, however, that it will always take time to regain and
rebuild that trust and sometimes you never really get it all back. 

Two incidents come to mind in this area, and, while I will not go into
detail about them, I offer them here from my own experience. When I assumed
the presidency in Ohio in 2008, we had always conducted our board meetings
in person, especially the next one after our state convention in November. I
decided on my own to try having our winter board meeting by phone. I thought
that it would save us some money and take away the uncertainty about the
weather that often affected attendance at that first meeting of the year.
One of my board members sent me an email saying that she thought that the
first meeting with a new president should be face-to-face. Was she correct?
I could have put my foot down and decided that it was going to be my way or
the highway, or I could have taken her advice and observation under
consideration, which I am very glad I did because she was right. This is one
way to build a team. 

The second incident caused pain and public humiliation for one of our board
members because of my failure to follow through in communicating information
and caused me to have to seek forgiveness and do all in my power to regain
trust and love. Hindsight is always 20/20, but it can teach us something if
we are willing to listen. I immediately admitted my mistake and continued to
seek ways not to let it occur again on my watch. I am pleased today to
report that that person continues to be an effective part of this affiliate.


Some Driving Tips for the Affiliate President

I want to conclude my thoughts here with some safe driving tips as they
apply to leadership in the NFB. Nationwide Insurance says:

*	Avoid driving when you are tired. As an affiliate president be sure
to get your rest and avoid big decisions and deliberations when you are
tired or not feeling well. 
*	Always use caution when changing lanes. Change can be hard, and
people get set in their ways, so as a leader do all that you can to signal
when you are about to change lanes. Perhaps you've heard the old church
edict "we've never done it that way before." This is often true in
organizations like ours as well. People resist change and have to be jollied
along.
*	Don't allow children to fight or clown around in your vehicle. As a
leader you have to distinguish between the fights that are worth it and the
ones that aren't. You also have to encourage healthy debate but not allow
people's personal issues and problems with others to get in the way of
getting affiliate work done. It is your job to keep the organization focused
and moving down the road with the lowest number of distractions. 

In an article entitled "Top Ten Safe Driving Tips" Ed Grabianowski
maintains,

*	Be extra careful when driving in bad weather. Trust me, trouble will
come and the weather will get bad, and you will have to pay close attention.
In our affiliate we experienced a dramatic financial storm during the second
year of my leadership, and I really had to pay careful attention to all
aspects of our affiliate, especially financially. Also remember that people
will watch you more closely during the bad times, and it is during those
times that you really find out a lot about yourself both as a leader and an
individual. 
*	Watch out for other drivers. As a leader you have to keep your eyes
on others both good and bad, and you have to lead the entire affiliate, not
just selective parts of it. More important here, though, you have to make
sure that other sometimes well-intentioned drivers in the affiliate don't
cause accidents. We are responsible for and to each other. 
*	Maintain your vehicle for safety. This means be proactive and
vigilant. Don't let the small leak develop into a major catastrophe if you
can help it. In other words, an ounce of prevention can be worth a pound of
cure. 

Finally, Robert Schaller in his article entitled "70 Defensive Driving
Rules" suggests: 

*	Pay attention. As a leader you have to be attentive and stay on top
of things and take the job seriously. Return emails and phone calls and
other correspondence, and keep your eyes open for obstacles and
opportunities for your affiliate. In short, really demonstrate that you want
to be president and that you are willing to put in the time and commitment
necessary to be a successful one. 
*	Don't prevent others from passing. Sometimes as a leader you have to
get out of the way of those you trust and those who you believe are doing
good for the affiliate and let them be successful. You cannot feel
challenged or threatened. In fact you should find ways to use their
enthusiasm and assertiveness for the good of all. Also as a leader you need
to know when it's time to let some people go, i.e. move on from the
affiliate. Sometimes it is clear that the NFB is not for everyone, and as a
leader you need to know when to let those drivers pass you by and keep your
affiliate on a steady course.

With these experiences and tips, I hope that current and future NFB leaders
can navigate around some of the potholes and difficult roads on their
journey to bringing the blind to first-class citizenship in America and the
world.

M 

 

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