Sparking the fire… again.

Passion is fuel for community organising. Our energy is a precious resource, and we have to be intentional about where and when we give it. If we don’t have passion to fuel these decisions, we can very easily fall into repetitive patterns that leave a group feeling disheartened and having achieved very little progress. As organisers, our job is to re-spark this passion and help the team fuel their own fire (I am really on the fire analogy at the moment, just so you know).

Building up leaders in communities, getting them to strategise and work together, and creating space in which they can step into their own power doesn’t happen overnight. It’s slow, and it’s easy to lose the energy and momentum that comes from that first spark of collective vision. Our 1:1s help us identify the root of a person’s passion, and as organisers we bring people together that can share in this energy. We serve as the guides to channel the energy, we work to help them see the strength in their shared collective vision, and we push them along to ensure that this vision stays afloat.

It can be frustrating to see a group’s energy dwindle, but it does happen — often. In a world where community organising can be the root to sustainable community power, sometimes you just want to grab the reigns and do it yourself. But, that wouldn’t be organising. Nor would we be doing our job correctly. Organising is difficult, because it is truly giving power back to the people. We live in a world that isn’t designed to do this. A world where the people that sit in positions of power don’t have lived experience of the problems that they are trying to fix. It’s a broken system, and it can feel really hard to be someone that pushes against it. I can’t blame someone for losing their energy when the system itself doesn’t support them to push for change. Nor can I give up on a team when they feel this way.

I have been thinking a lot about the role of the organiser in these situations. We all have our own approaches on how we re-spark a group’s passion. Mine is, I must admit, still a little heavy-handed. I am not great at subtlety, and I have a lot of awe for my colleagues who come at these situations with a light touch. There is such beauty in skilled precise coaching and framing, however even the best of us sometimes let that energy fall. If this rings a bell don’t lose hope — losing energy doesn’t mean the end of a core team’s journey! But, if you’ve been putting in the time with your coaching 1:1s and your team still isn’t moving anywhere, below are some things that you can do as an organiser to re-energise and refuel the work.

How can we re-spark that fire?

1. Be honest. Honesty is key to organising. Too often organisers try to influence the work from the sidelines, hoping that the process will work and the people will become leaders (believe me, I’ve done it). Recently, I have been trying to give my teams more agency. I explain the organising process, each and every step, and I work with them to start asking important questions. If things don’t work we talk about why. We acknowledge our failures and reflect on how we could have shaped it for the better. We use our 1:1s to help guide and shape these reflections on an individual level.
2. Language is powerful, and we use it for a reason. We can’t shy away from words like power, strategy, and purpose, nor should we. If we want our teams to be leaders, we need to give them the tools and resources to do so. This includes giving them the language to inspire both themselves and others. There is something pretty amazing about seeing a groups start to implement community organising language. It’s powerful!
3. Campaign Charts. Get your team to re-strategise, and don’t be afraid of this! Sometimes things don’t work and teams need to sit back for a second and acknowledge this. We love a campaign chart here at Connecting For Good because it helps us re-focus and re-discover our energy. It gives us time to take stock of what we have (or may not have) achieved, and allows us to re-think about our passions and goals. It helps our teams re-find their purpose, together.
4. A passion-fuelled speech. There is a reason that speeches are a part of social justice culture. They work… if they’re good. Sometimes we need someone to take us on a journey, to re-spark that passion and to show us how powerful we can be if we work together. Ideally, you will get to a point where your team are the ones doing this — supporting each other along and bringing others into the movement. But, if all else fails, I think you’re well within your right as an organiser to bring that fuel to the flame. Remind them of why they come together every week, why they still care enough to show up, and why organising is the methodology that we use. Collective power IS power.
5. Reach out to others. Sometimes a core team needs some added energy. As an organiser it can be easy to fall into a rhythm with your team, and you can lose sight of the movement building part of the process. Ideally, your core team will join you in this building — an organiser and a core team working alongside each other to find more people to support and guide the movement is the dream! If your team feels stagnant, maybe it’s time to insert some new energy!
6. Know when it’s time to move on. I am still learning how best to do this one, but it is important. Sometimes the energy drops, people’s vision shift, and there are other places that need your organising skills. It can be really difficult to do, but as an organiser it is your job to sense that shift and understand the importance of your own time and energy. Maybe it’s time to regroup. Be honest with your team (back to point one), and, if it fits, invite them to join you as you shift your focus. Perhaps you can embark on a new journey together, or maybe they are happy with where they sit on their own leadership journey. No time was wasted time. Ever.
7. To be continued… this is a working document — if you have any additions or suggestions on how you re-spark the fire with your own core teams please comment below!