[nagdu] what the NFB Should Do!

[Tami Kinney]

Marion, et al.,

Agreed, re: article and well-said.  I appreciate the humor and the
expression of thanks to the doers, whether it's the bits or the bites we
contribute... While also making a strong statement.  /smile/

As I learn more about the organization -- and thus its warts and those
of some of its people or even groups within the larger organization -- I
keep hearing a long ago boss and mentor from my early career: Never go
to the boss with a complaint without also having at least one solution
to offer.  Good advice from a wise woman! Having a solution to a problem
is much easier in the context of your job and department or company than
with a large member organization like the NFB, and at least one
organizational wart really sticks in my craw, making it easy to feel
whiney and powerless... But I know how much good I've gotten out of the
past work and the current work, so I am more motivated to do my little
bits to contribute... Very small bits! But those little things to keep
entertained enough to avoid complaining to adamantly about things I
would like to see done or changed, because then I would feel obligated
to help be part of the solution...  That thought does shut me up fairly
often.  Don't know if that's what my mentor had in mind, but if you're
afraid to complain you do have more time to do other things. /lol/

On Thu, 2011-06-23 at 10:08 -0400, Margo and Arrow wrote:
> It's called taking ownership.  marion, well-said email and like Cindy, I 
> think you might want to consider expanding it to a Monitor article.
> 
> Margo and Arrow
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Cindy Ray" <cindyray at gmail.com>
> To: "NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users" 
> <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Thursday, June 23, 2011 9:49 AM
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] what the NFB Should Do!
> 
> 
> > Marion, I think that was well said. I think you should enlarge upon it and 
> > make a Monitor article out of it. I know that variations have been done 
> > before, but we can't hear it often enough.
> >
> > Cindy
> >
> > On Jun 23, 2011, at 8:09 AM, Marion Gwizdala wrote:
> >
> >> Dear All,
> >>    Please excuse this cross-posting but I think it is important enough 
> >> that I wanted to share it with as many of you as possible. When I speak 
> >> with many blind people who find out I am a leader in the Federation, I 
> >> often have them say, "The NFB should ...". You can fill in the blank with 
> >> a myriad of suggestions of what needs to be done to improve the lives of 
> >> the blind. Generally, my response is, "Are you a member of the NFB?" The 
> >> most frequent answer is "No!" This opens the door for me to share that 
> >> the Federation is a membership organization -  a grass roots Movement in 
> >> which each member must be actively involved in order for us to improve 
> >> our lives. It is not dr. Maurer; it is not the Board of Directors; it is 
> >> not the people who work at the National Center for the Blind; it is not 
> >> our divisions, our affiliates, or our chapters! It is each and every 
> >> member of the movement! I then invite them to become a member of the NFB 
> >> and hear the same tired excuses of not being a joiner, not
> > having enough time, not wanting to choose sides, not agreeing with the 
> > philosophy, yah dah yah dah yah dah yawn! "In other words," I say, "you 
> > want someone else to solve your problems for you and are unwilling to 
> > help. Is that right?" Of course, they think I am a rude, obnoxious, 
> > belligerent Federationist, what my wife and I would call "C.B." - 
> > Confirmation Bias - the bias that "All Federationists are (fill in the 
> > blank!" and this experience confirms this belief!
> >>    I praise those of you who have joined me in our effort to improve the 
> >> lives of the blind. You have not made it someone else's problem to solve; 
> >> you have made it yours! To paraphrase the words of Mahatma Gandhi , "You 
> >> are the change you want to see in the world!" Thank you for your service 
> >> and for joining me on the barricades! On to Orlando!
> >>
> >> Fraternally yours,
> >> Marion Gwizdala, President
> >> National Association of Guide Dog Users (NAGDU)
> >> National Federation of the Blind
> >> 813-626-2789
> >> President at NAGDU.ORG
> >> HTTP://WWW.NAGDU.ORG
> >> _______________________________________________
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> >
> >
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