Sister Joyce Small PGM of Indiana GGCCM on Visionquest

                                 "GOOD LEADERSHIP IS IMPORTANT"

GOOD LEADERSHIP IS IMPORTANT

Our Eastern Star can only be successful with a cooperative membership that works together and good leaders who have leadership and management skills. The future of our Order demands our best experience, energy and leadership abilities. A good leader will earn respect from their chapter and their district. But just because you are a Worthy Matron, District Deputy, or Grand Officer this does not mean that you are issued a micro chip for your brain with all the answers to all the questions that you will be asked.

Leadership stands for the following:

L-Loyalty…to personal ideals, constantly growing higher and broader, to the ideals of the Order of the Eastern Star.

E-Energy…the motive power which pushes on past weariness, monotony and discouragement to ultimate achievement.

A-Adventure…the spirit which makes us eager to step out on ways that have not bee tried-new paths, new ventures which we face boldly and unafraid.

D-Dependability…may each of you be ever strong, remembering a chain is only as strong as its weakest link.

E-Enlarging Interests. May knowledge and sympathy grow constantly, leaving no room for selfishness and narrowness.

R-Reverence…for all things holy-the personalities of others, for God, the source of our power and strength, goodness and love. Reverence growing into greater love.

S-Sincerity. That in all our relationships there may be no sham or pretense, but only simplicity and truth. That we may be willing to be our best selves for the sakes of others and our Sisters and Brothers and the Order of the Eastern Star.

H-Humility. Working not for ourselves, but for the good of others, really desiring the best things for the other person and our Order.

I-Insight…that the enterprises we plan may be built wisely, whether great or small, not only for today but for the days and years to come.

P-Poise…that in the busyness and responsibility and increasing activity of the year, you may still be kind and friendly, confident, serene, unruffled, restful. That unimportant things may be kept in their place.

A good leader sets goals, making them realistic and attainable, but high enough to be a challenge. Following is a list of goals that I set one of the years that I served as Worthy Matron. My chapter achieved half of them. Think of others that will help your own chapter to grow. Goals don’t just happen, you have to believe, you have to be willing to work on them. When a chapter adopts a common set of goals and makes a commitment to achieve them, the members have a sense of unity.

            1. Have each station filled at every meeting. Each officer is to select a pal to fill in if the officer cannot be present. Each officer is responsible for seeing that his/her station is filled at each meeting.

            2. Initiate 10 new members.

            3. Have at least 5 sideliners at each meeting.   

            4. Start meetings on time.

            5. Appoint one officer each month to be responsible for writing and/or visiting the      

                chapter’s Sunshine Pal at the Indiana Masonic Home.

            6. A written invitation be sent to each new member for the first meeting following

                their initiation.

            7. Establish a follow up program after initiation for an instruction/question/answer

                session.

            8. Help someone in need in your chapter.

How a meeting is conducted can make a difference as to whether a Sister or Brother comes back again!

1. We must have good ritualistic work. Not everyone can do pord perfect work, but it is nice if all make an effort to learn their part.
2. The Worthy Matron must preside well, get the business over with. This takes planning ahead.
3. Very important are well planned programs or entertainment.
4. Send all your members one of you chapter yearbooks. Maybe if they know what is happening they will come to the meetings.
5. Have a calling committee to call and remind local members of the meetings. The caller could be a shut in and thus give them a felling of being neede. Have a Transportation Committee-some cannot drive a night and would appreciate a ride, but would not ask.
6. Greet everyone warmly when they arrive for the meeting.
7. Involve everyone somehow.
8. Always start you meetings on time.

Some of you may remember my fun pin—a little lamb that read “Ewe Are Special”. I believe that each one of our members is special, whether they are an officer, a committee member, or a sideliner. Each one is special and has their own special talent to contribute. But we must make them feel special and appreciated. We need to improve the courtesy that we extend to people. This is one way to get people back to chapter and increase motivation. Our members need a pat on the back or a sincere “Thank you” for a job  well done.

Now is the time to look forward. We can do nothing with time past, it is gone forever. However, we can use our experiences with our past successes and failures as our guidelines for establishing our goals for the future. As leaders in your chapters, you need to be positive, a good motivator, get along exceptionally well with others, to be very conscientious, and have a lot of self pride.

This is a quote from Lou Holtz, retired football coach at Notre Dame:

I saw a group of men in my hometown,

I saw a group of men tearing a building down,

With a heave and a ho and a mighty yell,

They swung a beam and the sidewalk fell.

And I said to the foreman, “Are these men skilled,

The type you’d hire is you wanted to build?”

And he laughed and said, “Why, no indeed.”

He said, “Common labor’s all I need.

For I can tear down in a day or two

What it took a builder ten years to do.”

And I thought to myself as I walked away,

“Which of these roles am I going to play?

Am I the type that constantly tears down

As I make my way, foolishly, around?

   Or am I the type that’s trying to build with care,

   In hopes that my organization’ll be glad I was there?”

No matter what others are doing, my friend, or what they are leaving undone, God’s counting on you to keep on with the job ‘til the very last battle is won. He’s counting on you to be faithful, He’s counting on you to be true. Yes, others may work, or others may shirk, but remember—God, and your chapter, is counting on you.