Well, the meeting was great. No new parents but a few new staff members. We started by having everyone signin and giving them a raffle ticket for a door prize that was leftover from some other event. We got right down to business and finished in 30 minutes.
My main problems have been getting people to show on time, so I am not repeating things, as well as the people who come because they want to change major things, like the fundraiser that is already in progress or how their kids are disciplined.
I don't like starting off the year hearing what we are doing wrong and why some person, who has never shown any interest, should be allowed to tell us we aren't doing enough. So nothing bad happened and the staff envolved are totally ready to get started on all the events we worked hard to fine tune these last few years as well as faster moving and organized meetings.
The doorprize drawing for those who arrive on time is an idea I either got from this board or the magazine, so thanks for the great idea to get things going.
The irony of commitment is that it’s deeply liberating-in work, in play, in love. The act frees you from the tyranny of your internal critic, from the fear that likes to dress itself up and parade around as rational hesitation. To commit is to remove your head as the barrier to your life. --Anne Morris
We try to preempt that kind of problem by holding to a printed agenda. That's not a foolproof solution though. At that meeting, we spend time reviewing the purpose of every committee in our PTO, plus we have signup sheets set out for all the committees and encourage people to sign up at the meeting (we also send home a committee sign up sheet in our welcome packet so everyone has seen a committee list/descriptions about a week before the first meeting). That seems to help avoid lots of miscellaneous questions about how individuals can get involved.
We also review our budget in detail, hopefully answering unasked questions about how we intend to make & spend our money.
We also review the activities and events we have planned.
Frankly, our first meeting is alot of presentation by the board and very little discussion from the audience.We try to anticipate what the audience wants to know and give them the information in a controlled fashion so the meeting doesn't turn into a free-for-all open dialogue. Hope this helps. Stay enthused!!
I have to agree that the first meeting you truly try to excite people yet also get across the schedule for the next few months, I always feel that I am scaring them away but we start off right off the bat. I always have a icebreaker game that helps gets things moving and everyone talking. What I do is if someone new brings up an idea I talk about it briefly and then ask if they could put info together for the next meeting, that way you know to put it on your agenda and you will find out how seriuos that person was. I make sure that new ideas are put in the minutes so that it has been put out there. I NEVER say "thats the way we have always done it"...ha ha ha
"When you stop learning you stop growing."
I think your frustration is probably felt by many.
How about switching things around? If you know that this particular meeting is often frustrating and not very productive, why do it the same way again this year? How about making it more of an introduction to PTO? Or a welcome meeting only? Or a get to know folks meeting? Or a "50 ways you could connect" meeting? Or something. Make it really positive and perhaps dispense with a lot of the business (that's the part that frustrates you, I bet) for this meeting. Save that for next.
If you usually get 20 at a meeting, even though your first meeting draws 75. Maybe make your goal at your first meeting to get 35 to your second meeting. Those second-meeting attendees will be real prospects for becoming high-level contributors to your group.
Just wondering, do any of you feel that very little is accomplished at the first meeting of the year because there are a bunch of new people-who usually only come to the one meeting-and they are constantly trying to interject things that get you off topic? I know I should be excited about the possibility of more help, but with this being my 5th year in PTO and my 2nd as an officer, I always dread those people that open their mouth before even grasping what we are trying to do. Please someone say something so I don't feel quite so negative about this first meeting of the year!
The irony of commitment is that it’s deeply liberating-in work, in play, in love. The act frees you from the tyranny of your internal critic, from the fear that likes to dress itself up and parade around as rational hesitation. To commit is to remove your head as the barrier to your life. --Anne Morris
