Sharing your gift with others
/There I was speaking for an association & their volunteer leaders when it hit me. This is what’s missing.
You see, for months I wondered how I & my role of chair for the Austin Young Chamber could invest in our volunteer leaders who invest so much time & talent back in the Young Chamber.
I spent my year as chair using my business operations skills to help with a leadership transition, a strategic plan, and a re-branding process. It hadn’t crossed my mind to use my experience with leadership development to solve this challenge. This could be the legacy project that I leave behind because it would bring tremendous value to the Young Chamber and its members.
“When are serving, it is most effective when we are sharing our gifts.”
Alright, first step… buy-in.
I floated the idea of Leadership Development Day to the CEO and other key leaders and was quickly greeted with their excitement.
Cool, now I just needed to make it happen.
One thing I knew before I started was that this event needed to be inclusive. The staff, board, and committee leaders were the first to get the invite.
But what about all the undiscovered talent? We sought them out too. This was going to be the chance for everyone to grow their potential.
With some input from some committee leaders (Ashley in particular!) and others, I began carving out the day with assistance from my intern. What a great learning opportunity for her too!
I put together an agenda that included presenters on community leadership, managing priorities, fundraising, messaging, and more. It was fun to connect with some of the great speakers who I have met along the way and recruit them share their unique message.
When the day finally came, I had great excitement about being the organizer and emcee for the first Leadership Development Day. I knew I could tie all the presentations together and ensure that the day flowed and, more importantly, stayed on time. People we’re giving up their first Saturday of 2019 for this-- that’s prime time for millennial brunchin’!
But what took the excitement to the next level was seeing 45 leaders looking back at me ready for a day of growing, learning, developing, and connecting with one another.
Can you spot us in this big group photo?
Many people shared their great insights with me as they were leaving. A few have even sent emails nearly a week later with all the great insights they have gained.
The greatest thing I have realized through the planning of the Austin Young Chamber’s first Leadership Development Day is the power sharing our gifts.
So many great speakers shared their gifts with us throughout the day. The staff executed every little detail with ease. We are so lucky to witness their gifts everyday.
I walked away realizing one of my best gifts is the ability to put things like Leadership Development Day together. I am so glad that I shared this gift to serve the Austin Young Chamber and look forward to next opportunity to share this gift in service to others.
“When we are serving, it is often most effective when we are using our gifts.”
