[Ansteorra] RE: Politics done right (was: The real problem . . .Officers)

[james at crouchet.com]

I would be honored.

Christian Doré

On 1 May 2006 at 23:45, Faelan Caimbeul wrote:

> Very well said, Your Excellency. Would you mind if I passed this
> along?
> 
> Faelan
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: ansteorra-bounces+faelancaimbeul=gmail.com at ansteorra.org
> [mailto:ansteorra-bounces+faelancaimbeul=gmail.com at ansteorra.org] On
> Behalf
> Of james at crouchet.com
> Sent: Monday, May 01, 2006 10:23 PM
> To: Kingdom of Ansteorra - SCA, Inc.
> Subject: [SPAM][Ansteorra] Politics done right (was: The real
> problem . .
> .Officers)
> 
> On 30 Apr 2006 at 22:50, Elinor Salter wrote:
> 
> > Elizabeth Blackthorne wrote:
> > > I can tell you why I personally didn't want hold an office:
> > > 1.  I don't like playing politics- I'm not interested in doing
> > good things as a group so that we are "seen", I just want our
> group
> > to do good things.  I don't care who takes the credit for the
> good
> > things.  I don't want involved in other groups dynamics and
> > problems.  I don't want my Opinions to be more than what they
> are.
> > >   
> > I'm sorry, milady, but ANY group you become a part of will have
> its
> > share of group politics.
> 
> Let me extend on this a bit.
> 
> Politics is the art of getting 3 or more people to work for a common
> goal.
> As with most things 
> in life, that can be done well or poorly, honestly or with
> deception. As
> much of a cliche as it is, 
> your guide is the golden rule. Treat others as you would have them
> treat you
> if your positions 
> were reversed. Whether your job is assistant to the site cleanup
> person or
> King, this applies 
> equally.
> 
> Consider the effects of using guilt as a motivator. We have all seen
> it
> done: "We all agreed 
> this should be done but only two of us have actually showed up to do
> the
> work. We had to 
> work hours and hours. I gave up time with my family, I missed my
> daughter's
> piano recital 
> and before I got home my dog got so hungry he ate the cat. I loved
> that cat.
> (insert sad violin 
> music here)."
> 
> The problem is that this attempts to motivate people by making them
> feel
> BAD. It works, but 
> only in the short term. Soon you will find people are dropping out
> or at
> least staying away 
> from you. People avoid activities that make them feel bad and repeat
> those
> that make them 
> feel good. They may not even make those decisions on a conscious
> level, they
> just find that 
> there are "more important" things they need to be doing.
> 
> The answer is to motivate people by making them feel good. For
> example,
> "Lord John, I 
> would you be willing to help me count widgits? I think you would be
> good at
> it and we would 
> like having you on the crew." That gives Lord John a little ego
> stroke and
> sets the tone for the 
> activity to be fun and rewarding. Just be careful that you are
> honest in
> your praise or it will 
> come back to bite you.
> 
> As you recruit, keep in mind that whatever the activity, it should
> be fun or
> at least satisfying to 
> complete. If you project an attitude that says "This is a miserable
> job that
> has to be done," 
> those you try to recruit will feel it. And it SHOULD be fun. I have
> seen
> crews having a fun time 
> sitting gate, doing privy patrol, picking up the site and washing
> dishes
> after the feast. I was 
> recently part of a crew that went to Gulf War to do land cleanup and
> layout
> before the 
> campers arrived. That is physically tough work with little glory but
> the
> people who did it this 
> year have already volunteered to do it again next year. We enjoyed
> our task
> for no good 
> reason save the company of our fellows and the satisfaction of a job
> well
> done. That is the 
> result of politics done right.
> 
> So don't deceive anyone, make the tasks fun, don't use guilt to
> recruit,
> recognize the 
> contributions of others afterward, listen to what your people have
> to say,
> don't hog the best 
> tasks or the glory, and in general, treat them as you would like to
> be
> treated. If you can do 
> politics that way you will be a good leader and YOU will have more
> fun.
> 
> One final bit of advice, only sort of related: don't volunteer for
> more than
> you can do and don't 
> volunteer your crew for more than they can do. Better 2 tasks well
> done than
> 4 done poorly.
> 
> Baron Christian Doré
> 
> 
> 
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