Take the risk yourself

"How do you move people past their fear to take action?"

"Be willing to take the risk yourself."

That's the exchange I remember most from our inaugural New Organizing Forum. Julian Bond, our guest of honor, was taking questions from the participants. As the event unfolded, I couldn't believe I was in the room with someone whom I had admired so much and had even heard my parents and grade school teachers talk about long before I even knew what DC looked like. And I really couldn't believe that I was responsible for organizing the event.

I joined NOI's staff a little more than a year ago after attending 2010 New Media Bootcamp, but I never knew the opportunities that I would have when I showed up on the 11^th floor office for what I thought was simply a 3 month fellowship.  In the past year, I have been given responsibility and ownership over my work, and most recently I was given what I would consider the opportunity of a lifetime.

About a month ago, we launched the New Organizing Forum, a vehicle to connect organizers across issues and generations in order to bridge the gap and allow free flowing knowledge to pass from organizer to organizer as we all strive to leave this world in a better condition than we found it. It was exactly the kind of thing that inspires my passion, and I didn't hesitate to let my supervisor, Sue Chinn, know about my interest.

When she learned of my eagerness to help, she did what any great organizer who trusted her team would do: handed over the program to me, letting me know that she supported my enthusiasm and wanted to give me more responsibility. I was beyond thrilled. The true meaning however did not hit me until our first forum. 

I got started right away working on our inaugural event with the honorable Julian Bond. Mr. Bond has been an activist in the civil rights, economic justice, and peace movements since his college years. As I said, he's been an inspiration and a source of awe for much of my life, so the opportunity to take this on was even more personal.

Julian shared critical pieces of his past, his organizing experiences, and even gave us a glimpse into what our future could look like if we stayed committed, didn't take no for an answer, and acted fearlessly. He pointed out that great leaders who had huge followings and made impactful differences all succeeded in part because they did not ask of anyone anything that they themselves were not willing to do.  I walked away from that forum not with simply a sense of pride but with additional insight, an overwhelming excitement to continue striving for what I believe in, and a heightened respect for those who organize and work hard daily fighting the good fight.

I am elated to be at the helm of such magnificent events "for the organizers, by the organizers."

The Forum will be a monthly event, and I want to involve our community as much as possible. If you're interested in helping us plan, or just attending, please email trell@neworganizing.com and I will make sure that you are in on the action!