If you were to look into the mirror and take a
look at your Attitude what would you see? If you now put on your
Grange glasses would you say you have a good attitude about the
Grange? Would you say that you have a good attitude about the people
in the Grange? What about its Officers/Leaders? What about its
activities? Now it is time to Face the cold hard truth: What do
others see and hear when they look at you concerning the Grange?
I always like to make the analogy; if you see someone walking down
the street and they have a long face, staring at the ground and just
generally looking lost what do you think? You think they have had a
bad day, gotten some bad news, or are just upset about something.
Now what if you see someone walking down the street and they have a
bounce in their step, a smile on their face and they are waving to
folks and saying hello to who ever catches their eye? You would say
that person is having a good day, happy about life, and someone you
would like to talk to. Well, it is the same with the Grange.
If folks hear us complain about our meetings, talk bad about our
fellow brothers and sisters (we are a fraternal order), or just act
like it is a chore to be a Grange member, how many folks would join
if you asked them? Now if they hear us saying good things about our
meetings, talking about how much fun we had with the good people at
the Grange and how wonderful it was to work doing the activities for
the Grange, how many folks would join if you asked them? I know for
a fact the percentage would be higher in a positive case.
Your Attitude is the single most important tool you have to convince
people to join the Grange. Attitude is the foundation to all that we
do in the Grange. We need to be positive, open and welcoming, and
have that “can do” or “find a way” type of attitude. We need to be
team focused. And most of all have fun! If you talk good about the
Grange, people are going to want to know more. If you say good
things about your fellow Grangers, they will feel more comfortable
when they come to Grange functions and Grange activities. If you act
like you are having fun working for the Grange and have that
satisfied feeling about your time spent at the Grange others will
not be so reluctant to participate with us in our activities.
Now when you ask them to join you have just eliminated any excuse
they may have had about the organization. Then you can focus solely
on them and their needs. You can tell them Virginia Baker #1529 they
are missing out on a lot of fun, fellowship and making new friends.
You can tell them that they too can feel that positive feeling of
doing something good.
We choose our attitude every morning when we wake up. We choose if
we want to be kind, say "please," open the door for others, help
someone, and turn in the wallet/purse we find at the mall. We can
choose if we want to be happy in the face of adversity. We can
choose if we want to speak positive about our Grange and Grangers
and the Grange work we do.
So when you are looking in the mirror and evaluating you attitude
ask yourself; "Would you like to join the Grange?" "Do you trust the
Granger in the mirror?" "Do you see a positive Grange image?" Make
the right choice every time you do or say something "Grange."
BE POSITIVE
