What makes a good club member?

WITH the outdoor season drawing ever closer, Commonwealth Games star Natalie Melmore has started to think about what makes a good club member? Not necessarily ‘good’ in the sense of bowling ability, but in the ability to give back to the club and be a valuable team member.

Here are her thoughts…

Outdoor clubs often require assistance from members in order to run the club effectively and considering most clubs are run solely by volunteers it is not outrageous to expect, whatever your situation, to help out your club in some way during the season with some day-to-day tasks.

At my own club of Kings BC in Devon, we are relatively small in terms of our facilities but have a higher than average membership of around 100 people. The majority of members pull their weight at our club by taking their turn at tea or cleaning duty – or perhaps being part of the committee, team of selectors or helping with ground works – but as a member of a club like ours, what should you be reasonably expected to do?

Get involved

As a worker myself, I think it is important to differentiate the expectations of a member who works full time compared to a retired member. That being said, there is no excuse for non-involvement whatever your work commitments. I cannot admit to being the most helpful member of Kings, but I certainly try to ‘pull my weight’ where possible. Over the years I have helped organise various open days, been ladies captain, selector and have even cleaned the club a couple of times.

All this being said, I must admit to being pretty bad at participating in friendlies – when you are a player who enjoys competitive bowls it is easy to avoid this foreseeable ‘chore’ but we all must remember that the revenue that friendly games bring to any club are imperative, so by making yourself available for at least one a year (I normally try to participate in one game at the very start of the season) you are really helping out. You might even have some fun!

If you are a young member who works – why not try and help with publicity for the club? No doubt you use social media personally, these ‘skills’ can be used to promote your club to local residents in order to try and attract new members or perhaps start a group on Facebook to create an open forum for current members to discuss issues that can be taken to the committee if necessary.

Perhaps you are retired or only work part time? No doubt you have some skills from your previous / current career that could be used successfully at the club. In PR, accounting or maybe sales? Why not use them to your clubs benefit – alternatively, if you are club secretary or on the committee it would certainly be useful to try and find out a little more about the potential skills your members possess.

Running a bowls club, whether indoors or outdoors should be seen as business and your members, the ‘employees’. Getting the best out of your members is a skill that should be used to the advantage of the club. If you guide members into positions or ‘work’ they dislike you could potentially push them away. It is standard practice in the workplace that you will get the best out of people if you let them partake in tasks they enjoy.

Don’t just moan, do something

When speaking to fellow bowlers who have been in a secretarial or presidential position within their own club about what makes a good member, the one overriding point is that they would like members to create solutions, not problems. There will always be elements of our club that you would like to be improved but rather than only being negative about these things, why not help out to solve the problem. If you don’t like the way the club is run then join the committee. Don’t like the green – you cannot really moan about it unless you are willing to help improve it!

As a nation we just love to moan, myself included, but moaning about things at your club only creates a negative atmosphere and is probably one of the most unproductive characteristics you can possess as a member- unless you are prepared to help solve the problem.

Another way to help out at the club, particularly if you are a successful player who might have appeared in the local news is to help organise and/or promote an open day. The best time of the year to start thinking about this would be in March to look towards an open day in April when you are less busy with your own national or club competitions and have spare time to commit to the task.

How much free time you have should probably dictate your level of involvement but we are all responsible for the success of our own club and ultimately our sport as a whole. If clubs are losing members then the sport we love will not survive. In being good club members, you are all ultimately helping our sport to evolve and prosper. Do not let the management and running of your club boil down to the same old faces this year – make a positive change and find out what you can do to help – I cannot promise it will always be enjoyable, but it will certainly be rewarding!