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From the President's Desk: ASJA: Home Makeover Edition

by Bob Bittner

2007-09

At long last, we are finally getting some much-needed painting done at our house. Today, the garage doors are going from some kind of weird pale salmon and cream to white. Not adventurous, I know. But compared to the old color scheme -- a leftover from the previous owners -- white is looking pretty good.

It's the next thing on a long list. Par for the course for home ownership, I guess. Upkeep -- not to mention actual improvements -- is a constant challenge.

It's not that different with ASJA.

When I joined in 1998/99, we had just under 800 members. Now, we're edging ever closer to 1,500. We've grown dramatically in size and in scope over the last seven years. And, frankly, there have been some growing pains.

Thanks to expanded geographical diversity among the membership, fewer than half of our members attend the annual conference or participate in regional get-togethers. As a result, we often don't know the faces or real-world personalities of people we banter with daily online. And that sometimes leads to misunderstandings, arguments or worse.

Because of today's segmented marketplace, many of us write for publications that didn't even exist a decade or so ago, publications that other members may never have even heard of. As a result, ASJA has gained in membership diversity -- an enriching step, I believe. But some members are openly struggling with ASJA's reflection of the changing marketplace, questioning how our membership requirements mesh with unfamiliar markets.

Some committees have become so critical to ASJA's ongoing health and growth that they are bearing a far heavier burden than at any time in the past. They are also more visible than in the past, putting them on the front lines for criticism and second-guessing. Yet all of them continue to be chaired by member volunteers who sometimes put in a shocking number of hours just to keep things afloat. And still we dream of more member benefits and services, which largely depend upon volunteer leadership.

Call what we're experiencing growing pains, middle age, or "This Old House" syndrome. Our membership is strong enough, I believe, to help ASJA successfully mature. And the result, I just as firmly believe, will be an organization fully equipped to remain a relevant and essential part of the freelance journalist's life.

This isn't blind naiveté.

As I write this, a heated forum discussion in the Inside ASJA section is in full swing. Mindful that discussions here and in the Water Cooler section were reaching their boiling point, I decided to see if the whole forum was going under. Happy to report, it wasn't. In Books, Magazines & Newspapers, and the Regional sections, it was business as usual -- members asking questions, offering advice, providing leads and warnings, and generally treating one another like professional colleagues, mutual mentors, and, yes, even friends.

That spirit of collegiality and professionalism is what made ASJA such an attractive option to me seven or so years ago. I'm guessing that same spirit continues to lead so many to apply to join our ranks. That spirit may be assailed at times, and at times you may even have to go hunting for it. But it continues to be ASJA's strongest suit -- our "Welcome" mat, if you will. And as long as it's in place, ASJA is certain to thrive.

But as we make the journey and figure out how to be the best ASJA we can be from this point on, we all need to realize that a natural result of growth is change. We really don't have the luxury anymore of simply doing things because we've always done them. And that stretches all the way from how we elect Board members to how we manage committees, from creating a healthy online forum to deciding where we hold our annual conference. We need to seriously and regularly evaluate the benefits we provide to members and the structure we use to do that. I wish we were talking about a fresh coat of paint and some nice landscaping. But in order to keep ASJA alive and well and strong for the decades ahead, I believe we'll need to look more closely at improving areas that are more fundamental. This certainly is going to be an ongoing topic of Board and committee discussions -- and action.

I don't know that this process is ever easy or fun. But ASJA is our house. And we need to make it the strongest, most hospitable home for the professional freelance writer.

Bob Bittner, ASJA's president, lives in Charlotte, MI (which, for reasons unknown to him, is pronounced "shar-LOT"). Reach him at prez (at) asja.org.