[NFB-Talk] Addressing Open House Concerns

[Tina Hansen]

First off, thank you to the person who sent me the link to our page on
building membership. That might get us started.

 

But I also just want to express a few observations.

 

I can understand the pandemic has turned everything upside down, and that
some people still don't feel safe going out.

 

Ever since our attempts 3 weeks ago, I've been wrestling with this. It seems
that on my own, I feel I can't find ways to find a middle ground. Here's
what I'm thinking.

 

First off is the tension I feel with information versus entertainment.
There's so much one can say about our organization, but how much are people
willing to take? If we focus too much on presenters only, there's a chance
of people getting restless. Yet if we go to the other extreme and just do
activities, some will wonder what the point is.

 

Another tug of war I feel is based on how long our segments should be. It
seems that our sound bite world likes everything in 10-second segments, but
that doesn't allow for any substance.

 

I also feel a tension about offering gimmicks or artificially having to prop
up everything versus just doing this solely based on internal motivations.
Gimmicks or incentives might create false expectations if we depend on them,
so I'd like to start with something and then move past that.

 

I understand this is true all over the country.

 

I feel like we're running into the proverbial chicken and egg problem. To
get a lot done, we need to build up our chapter, but we can't do a lot with
just one or two people.

 

In short, it seems we may need to start from scratch.

 

So does anyone have any thoughts on my observations or suggestions on how to
either live with these tensions or get past them? Thanks.

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