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Does tour organization's member \hlp readily accept new opportunities and responsibilities? Are executive PUHllOl‘l‘v easily filled? Are there more \ultintcers than positions? if you answer positively to these questions. you belong to a healthy organization with higth motivated members. This may not he the situation for all groups. (the ol the greatest challenges in mlunler-r organimnom Is the motiva- tion ol members Luv. motivation can lead to the downfall of the organiza» non lven With some highly motivated indulduals. the organization will be ineffective it these members are unsuc- ct'wl'ttl in involving olhcts. Over- workcd. keen rncmhers soon tire and tasks are let! undone. What slcps can you take? First. talk to the membership. Survey each indlw dual and lLlL‘illlll. the l’actorls) lhat motivate them In belong to and partii Lipttlc In the organI/titlon. Recogni/e Ihttl lhcsc rcttsons will be unique to cath person What motivates me may have llltle it any significance for you. Mary Ellen Norry Group your members according to their source of motivation, be it power, achievement or affiliation. A person motivated by power accepts opportunities where he can make an impact on others; an achievement motivated individual is concerned with success. improved performance and opportunities for creative expresâ€" sion; the affiliation oriented person is motivated by their need to be with people. Knowing the source of motivation will be helpful when recruiting volunteers for specific tasks. Match your volunteers to the tasks based on their reasons for doing. Demonstrate how these needs Will be fulfilled with this specific op- portunity, To be successful in your recruitment of volunteers, make use of volunteers job deâ€" scriptions that clearly identify the task, re- sponsibilities. time commitment as well as the type of training and support that is provided. We' re motiw vated to accept op- portunities when we have all the facts. Do you receive and give recognition for a job well done? A few well chosen, sincere words of thanks is one of the best sources of motivation for volun- teers. All too often, we overlook the posiâ€" tive and focus on the negative. Rather than giving negative feed- back, zero in on the strengths of your (:0- workers and share specific examples of their successes. "fly an exercise sharing “I appreciate" Com. ments at your meeting. Remember to identify each person by nan: and direct your comment to the dividual not the group. It’s a valuah exercise that leaves everyone {BEN-h:- good about himself and the organ: zation. The value of this exercise was emplified during work with a 11"" cattlemen’s association. In Janu,‘ to conclude a presentation on mo: tion. I shared one strength that 1 seen in each director during 1i . meeting. One man had been very-unit but from his expressions and»: brief comment it was evident lh-_: » i had quality ideas to share but la ‘ the confidence to do so. In my t. merit I recognized how we . benefitted from his participtr .».‘ provided encouragement on ll. abilities and challenged him to l . one additional idea at each mo. He accepted the challenge. At April meeting, we saw a more . - .i. dent director who more freely esp: l his ideas and shared how " preciate” comments had helpc .t.i to be more open. Your attitude towards rm i. bilities will influence how i x respond. If you want to [TM a: others to act, be enthusiastic ll var own actions and positive in yum 'll merits. Work along with out . in complete tasks rather than mi from afar. Motivation like entht ~ is contagious. If you set the ex» wit. others pick up on it. If your organization is experi .. .ng a lack of interest by the memh ‘Hl‘ for responsibilities, work at set i i: a positive example by giving honn: ind sincere appreciation and sit mg others how their needs can be : ht in specific opportunities. Chan; will not be immediate but with tirn our organization will benefit from in. tn- creased motivation of membw» Mary Ellen Norry is the rltl'll organization specialist for the Ontario Ministry of Agriculturv and Food in the Districts of Sudbul’.‘ and Manitoulin. She is the chairman of the Home & Country Editorial Committee. _â€"_â€"_â€"_h________â€"___/ l-l H JL‘ C July, August, September 1987