Having been on a few volunteer committees, my rules of thumb are:
Commitment Breeds Rewards
Putting your hand up to be involved and active on a committee is a great way to get started, and truly magnifies what you get back.
There’s nothing like a few committee meetings to start to get know people. That then leads to all sorts of links, tie ins etc. Even a brief spell on a committee can reap you benefits for years afterwards. Read Alan Weiss (”Million Dollar Consulting” and similar books) for some ideas on this.
Only a few people actually do the work
There are always a few key people who actually do the work. Find out who they are and work with them. The old saw about getting something done by giving it to a busy person, is oh so valid.
Ideas vs. Actions
A corollary to the above – lots of people have great ideas for this, that and the other. When it comes to implementing the ideas, the idea generators are not to be seen. If I am organising something then I always treat ideas as “nice to have” until someone signs up to take responsibility.
Pretty much any implementation, however bad, beats any number of virtual ideas.
Sustainability
Groups wax and wane according to the needs and energies of the committee and the members of the group. Decisions that are taken need to have at least half an eye on the future, and in particular how sustainable something is. Activities such as maintaining a web site need to be done with technology such that some else can take it over in the future. Using a specific tool just because it is convenient for you or you have access to it at work, leads to you not being able to hand it over.
Which Groups Should I Belong To?
There comes a time when a group becomes much less useful to you, and it is time to move on. Re-evaluate groups and commitments regularly (perhaps a couple of times a year), and change when appropriate. This is an idea I got from life coaching – evaluate activities and work out if they are energy boosters or energy drains for you. Remove the drains!
