Hey folks, mark your calendars for May 20-23! With the looming expansion, decisions and operations in our committees have taken on an extra layer of complexity. We need to juggle both growth and maintenance expenditures. We have to continue to refine our existing space but with an eye towards what will also help us in the future. We need a plan, a Six Month Plan!
How is this going to work?
Tl;dr: 5/11-5/19 submit ideas via drop box in Fired Arts, 5/20 @1 planning meeting to put proposal together, 5/23 @ 7 committee meeting to vote on individual components of Six Month Plan.
Step One: Most importantly, we want your ideas. All of them. From big, time consuming expansion efforts to five minute fixes for existing problems. From âItâs gonna take a team and I really donât have any timeâ to âI can do it this Saturdayâ. Absolutely anything you think should, could or would be really dreamy to be done in Fired Arts. To submit your ideas, there will be a drop box on top of the small grey cabinet with cards in the front pocket (and plenty of signage pointing to it!). Jot down your thoughts at any time and drop them on in. If you have a complex plan that is more than will fit on an index card, thatâs cool too, print it out-shove it on in, bind it and leave it underneath, itâs all good. If you have a late-breaking awesome idea, no worries! Weâll have the box at the meeting for any last minute contributions. If you canât make it to DMS between now and then, you can email me or send a message to @cmcooper0 on Talk and Iâll make sure it gets on the meeting table. You can attach your name to an idea so we have someone to wheedle for volunteer time or leave it anonymous if youâd prefer to just put the idea out there for someone else to pick up, both are completely legit.
Step Two: The Sunday, May 20th, planning meeting is a working meeting where we will give the proposed Six Month Plan some organization before it goes in front of the committee. There is no formal agenda, but there will be a loose structure to make sure we fully consider all submissions.
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We will read every idea brought to the table and discuss.
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We will attempt to pair plans with a volunteer to head up the effort.
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Action items will be placed into one of three priority categories.
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Tier 1: Immediate action for items with an attached volunteer
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Tier 2: Just as soon as we have volunteer hours
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Tier 3: Awesome idea, no idea how to pull it off but letâs all work on trying to figure it out
*There is a conceptual fourth category which is âplanning group doesnât think this is a good idea for FA in the next six monthsâ but I doubt we will need it? Our more likely problem is ideas that conflict with each other which we will try to work out during the meeting. If your idea ends up falling here and you disagree, I can let you know what the concerns were and you can bring it back to the committee meeting for voting (in person or via proxy - Iâll read out whatever you want said if you canât make it!).
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Plan will be written up and posted on Talk Sunday evening and put on the regular monthly meeting agenda. Members can discuss, drum up support, volunteer to shift an item up to T1, etc.
Tip for a successful proposal idea: Itâs extremely rare that I hear an idea for FA that isnât great. The problem comes in who is going to get it done? We have a limited pool of volunteer hours to throw at efforts and many of those are already tied up in ongoing maintenance, classes, firings, administration, etc. However, this doesnât mean you have to do it all yourself! Something that makes it a lot easier to support and back an idea is a good plan for how to execute that idea. Taking ownership of an idea does not mean you have to be the one to physically be there (though thatâs super appreciated too!), but that you will take responsibility for spearheading the effort. If you can slide that item onto your plate and find the volunteers, organize dates, create posters/ads/talk posts/etc. and be available to submit reports back to the committee on progress, then that makes your idea much, much easier to place into a Tier 1 slot. One quick addendum: If you have a great thought but just have zero time to put towards it, please still pass it along. Itâs possible that your idea will resonate with another volunteer who does have the time. Tier 3 doesnât mean it is a bad idea, just one we donât yet know how to make happen.
Step Three: At the monthly committee meeting on Wednesday, May 23, the committee will vote on the proposal. Weâll vote on items individually, not the whole plan. If there is anything that pops up between Sunday and Wednesday or we have additional proposed ideas at the meeting, they can be added at that time. In general, the document is going to be a living one that can be adjusted at future monthly committee meetings as needed. This is going to be a busy but super interesting time ahead of us, letâs put Fired Arts in a great position for growth.
So! If you are unable to make this meeting or that meeting, your voice can still be heard! I know meetings arenât anyoneâs most favorite thing, but the planning meeting is going to be laid back and relaxed as we try to get a groovy plan together for Fired Arts. Iâm going to bake which is either a plus or a minus, depends on the day, so please feel free to bring other snacks. 