It’s Called Mentoring

by Dave “Twit” Linberg

Welcome to all the new Regional Officers that we’re seeing listed in the regional reports. We are very happy to have you on the team. Many times, it is WHO you meet that makes the biggest difference in any organization. The “Who” are those people that teach you the ropes before you get rope burn. It’s called mentoring and it is a very important part of ABATE of Wisconsin.  If you’re new to your job, we’ll try to connect you with people that have done that job for a while and know the basics clearly. If you’re a long-time officer, please be prepared to share what you know… and be open enough to ask for more information from others for the blanks that you might still need to fill in.  As Chubby has often said, one of the biggest strengths of ABATE of Wisconsin is always knowing that you’re not in this alone, there is always someone there at your side and someone willing to watch your back.   That goes for any member, not just officers.

What’s that you say? You’re “just a little volunteer from Region XYZ – you can’t ask the State Officers questions?”  Wrong, wrong, wrong. You will find that the State Officers and other Regional Officers that have been around for years have made it through all those years because they are open to conversations and ideas from other people. If they operated in a self-important bubble, they wouldn’t be where they are. Every ABATE of Wisconsin officer is “just a volunteer.” The difference between them is only defined by what job they need to get done… and how long they have been doing it.   It’s called mentoring and it is a very important part of ABATE of Wisconsin.  It is often what keeps new members coming back.

For more years than I care to count, ABATE of Wisconsin has been talking about “getting more, younger members” into our ranks. The time to do this is now.  Are you the one? The one to bring in a new member or are you the one new member yourself?

Why the big fuss about new, younger members-can’t they just blend in? Maybe they can… but this is too important to let it balance on a maybe. I KNOW that they can blend in if we all make an effort at welcoming them: we all have to work on this together. Here’s the basic principle of it, and you’ve seen me talking about this before: It’s called mentoring and it is a very important part of ABATE of Wisconsin. If a new, younger member comes into ABATE of Wisconsin WITH a MENTOR that’s how we end up with a 25-year-old member that has 40 years of experience to fall back on. They come into the organization with access to the wealth of information that their mentor already knows about ABATE of Wisconsin and the mysteries of the motorcycle rights community. Are you mentor material? If you think you are, give your Regional Rep a call. They may need your help. If you know someone between the ages of 18 and 29 that would be a good candidate for an ABATE of Wisconsin membership, start talking to them now.

There’s one other part of this mentoring program that kind-of lurks behind the scenes but I know it’s there. We all (members that are already here) need to mentor EACH OTHER to make sure that these new people that are coming in are treated with the respect that every ABATE of Wisconsin member deserves. Chances are that some of them are going to “look just like us old farts” (without the grey hair) but there’s a whole group of sport riders out there that we are hoping will come into ABATE of Wisconsin with their slightly different choices in motorcycle model and manner of dress for the road. Be prepared to respect this: a rider is a rider. It’s as simple as that.

New people have new ideas. If they chose to speak about these new ideas at a meeting, listen and then conduct the conversation that follows accordingly. Don’t shut any new ideas down automatically if a new member’s thoughts and ideas won’t work, don’t fit into the mission of ABATE of Wisconsin, or don’t comply with the guidelines listed in our policies and procedures manual. By the same token, if it’s a really good idea that we haven’t thought of before – get the information to your district director for the board to discuss. We are looking to learn from these new riders as much as we’re hoping to teach them about our methods and successes in the past. 

While mentoring these new members, don’t forget about our past members….give those members who have let their dues expire a call and find out why they didn’t renew.  Information and open communication is a valuable tool that we can all learn from.  Maybe these “expired members” just need a little nudge or a buddy system in place to get them active again. Don’t forget that a little fun along the way helps too. Fun like we have at the Summer Hummer.  Hope to see you there, mentoring, of course.