A Letter to Paul Harris
This article isn’t just for Rotary members. If you are a Rotarian, I hope that you will read this…and share it with other Rotarians. If you are not a Rotarian, I hope that you will read this letter, and ask me questions about the organization. One that I believe has, despite its already global impact, vastly more potential to help our world.
Dear Mr. Harris,
I have been a Rotarian now, for about 5 years, and I need someone to talk to. Figured you’d be the guy.
Rotary excites me. It excites me not only because of the good works being done, past and present…but also because it allows me to connect with a part of myself that craves contribution and growth.
To me, Rotary represents not just an avenue for community service and networking, but a vehicle of limitless opportunity for personal growth. It often feels a bit selfish, to be honest. In Rotary, I see a giant platform to serve, but ultimately a place to cultivate my own gratitude and happiness. Hopefully, that’s just the world’s biggest WIN-WIN.
So why am I writing to you?
I’m writing to you because I’m concerned about Rotary.
Perhaps that sounds a bit arrogant. After all, I’m just one Rotarian, in one club…out of 1.2 global Rotarians and over 35,000 clubs. Your legacy is well preserved, and you should be extremely proud.
Nonetheless, I’m concerned that Rotary, specifically in the US (since that’s my experience) is failing to evolve. The membership data trend is downward, and I believe the strategies being discussed are a bit off the mark.
I’m concerned that the focus of US Rotary clubs is blurred. Partially because of changing socio-economic conditions, and partially because of the rapid pace of change in our data-driven culture.
When I speak to Rotarians in my district (and beyond), I hear consistent themes. For example: “It’s harder to find time for participation”. Also, it’s harder to attract new members…because it’s harder for them to find time too. It’s a bit “catch-22-ish”.
I hear of their desire for more hands on work. And I hear of their desire for a better Rotary education and framework.
When it comes to attracting new members, the message I hear coming from RI leadership is more centered on member demographics than member development. It is more focused on meeting schedules than on service and impact and fulfillment.
I believe there are significantly different challenges in the US (than other nations), when it comes to attracting and retaining new members, and to finding opportunities to serve…and that those challenges need a more focused, cooperative and creative approach.
I believe there is a sleeping giant within Rotary that, when awakened, can and will dramatically change the membership trend upward. I believe that giant is LEADERSHIP.
I’m not really talking about club leadership. I know that the Rotary Leadership Institute is making great progress. And I’m not talking about Rotary Peace Fellowship.
I’m talking about the fundamental skills and philosophies of leadership, especially the principles of servant leadership, which are urgently needed in our businesses, organizations and communities.
We want to attract young business professionals, right? Let’s become the organization that teaches them valuable leadership skills. Let’s show them how to become an impactful and effective leader, in their businesses, in the community and in their own families.
Let’s make leadership development a benefit of Rotary membership, and show them the connection between their impact as business and community leaders, and the gratitude that serves as the precursor to fulfillment and happiness.
Young professionals want to make a difference, but they also need to advance their careers, pay off student debts, and balance two-income families. Let’s give them a place to serve their community, and also a path to better advance their careers as well.
We speak of reaching millenials, but where is the voice of Rotary on the channels they’re tuning into? Let’s leverage the reach of Rotary to bring our message of leadership to the content streams they’re consuming.
Let’s make Rotary a place where local companies once again want to send their people, instead of fighting to overcome restrictive work schedules.
Let’s give current Rotarians the opportunity to attract new members by expanding their mission and asking them to share their own leadership lessons.
Let’s attract newly retired professionals (we need those too!) by allowing them to serve as mentors to young members.
Let’s make our Rotary clubs the epicenters of leadership development in our communities.
I believe that the concept of Servant Leadership has been marginalized in today’s age. I believe it has been dismissed as merely a spiritual pursuit, not one that can bring tangible value to our organizations. And that, to me, is like burying the ultimate weapon of mass construction.
When I think of the Rotary Areas of Focus, and of what I think the world so desperately needs…I think of empathy and stewardship. I think of placing people over profits, and service above self. In short, I think of Servant Leadership.
Who is better positioned than Rotary to bring this to the mainstream?
There are several organizations in the US that aspire to teach Servant Leadership, but I doubt most have heard of them. They do good work, but have a limited platform.
Why not make the 1.2MM Rotarians across the globe, the heart of servant leadership? Why not start with the nearly 350,000 US Rotarians, and attract 350,000 more because they are drawn not only to service, but to an environment that will help them develop as leaders?
Leadership is a valuable skill that will attract and retain new members. In turn, those principles will help us all to better serve humanity. I believe that to be a compelling message to prospects, employers, and the public at large.
Fortunately, there aren’t that many wells that need dug in the US. There aren’t that many people that need access to better sanitation. We will continue to support efforts like this wherever they are needed, of course… but let’s push Rotary in to the next phase of its evolution and focus on developing better stewards of humanity.
Leadership is what the world needs. Rotary has the power to attract countless new members who want to develop that skill. It will become a self-fulfilling prophecy where service to our members empowers service to the world.
Let’s engage a concerted technology effort that allows for centralized marketing and recruiting, centralized meeting-based training and instruction, and that creates a centralized voice for leadership across the globe. Let’s triple the size of Rotary in the next 5 years.
Or maybe we could just start with lunch. Are you free next Monday?
