Dear Rebecca,
This year I have been invited to stand for committee in the forthcoming AGM elections . I have never done this type of work before. Do you think it is a good idea ?
Yours wondering what I'm letting myself in for, Mia Fretwell
Dear Mia ,
Oh dear....bridge club committees.........what can I say about them ? Well, they are like trees that need to feed on sap , and you would be that proverbial " sap " as the new inexperienced recruit.
What I suggest you do first is to read the book Hells Bells , She's Thinking Of Standing For Committee....... by May I. Warner , which is harrowing tale of what awaits unsuspecting members, should they get elected onto BC committees. The author strives to tell the reader what a thankless task it is.
The tedium. The mind-blowing boredom that they will encounter, when meetings drag on for ages over meaningless minutiae. The painful irony of being elected on the pretext they are right for the job, only to be deluged with complaints, when everything they do , or fail to do, is wrong. Indeed, one chapter is devoted to the psychological damage committee members will incur, along with their tarnished reputations , simply because they allowed their initial foolish enthusiasm to completely undermine their better judgement.
Indeed, over the years several club members have asked me this same question, to which I have given them the same reply as you. Sadly, many chose not to read the book, and got elected onto the committee. So please....... don't end up being one of those who join up in ignorance, only to spend the rest of their time regretting their mistake . " Well, I told you so ! " are words you won't take kindly too.
Yours never drowning but always staying afloat, Rebecca
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