[Businessmtg] update to the Business Meeting

[Cathy A.]

Thank you so much Steve.

You always explain everything that needs to be explained in the best way
possible and thoroughly.
I now know more about ASP than I did before and I have been in program for
over 15years and in ASP since 2013. I now know more about the secretary
position, but I am glad I know more about ASP also.
Now I can see differently what has happened in some of my face to face
meetings that have closed over the years.
Thank you.

Take Care of Yourself!
Cathy
On Aug 5, 2015 3:17 PM, "Steve Rankin" <steve at serenitysys.com> wrote:

> Hi folks,
>
> Thank you Char for your interest and suggestions.
>
> There are several reasons why we have the one-year ASP membership
> requirement as well as several reasons why our officer positions are for a
> three-year term.
>
> * The Secretary is much more than just the person that recruits and trains
> our Daily Meeting Chairs. The Secretary position is an officer position in
> ASP. That means that the Secretary is one of the key leaders of ASP - a
> member of the Steering Committee that runs the nitty-gritty stuff of ASP
> behind the scenes. Sometimes, the nitty-gritty stuff is more gritty than
> nitty, so the officers need to have established a solid program, and the
> maturity to draw on our Traditions when they make decisions rather than on
> their personal feelings, etc.
>
> * The Secretary more than just another officer of ASP and member of the
> Steering Committee. The Secretary is the Chair of our Business Meetings.
> That means the Secretary needs to have an understanding of how our Business
> Meetings are run. Furthermore, the Secretary needs to understand that the
> Chair of the Business Meeting does NOT direct the Business Meeting.
> Instead,
> the Secretary facilitates the flow of the meeting without guiding it in any
> particular direction. In other words, the personal opinions of the
> Secretary
> should not have any effect on the discussion in the meeting.
>
> * In addition to being the Chair of the Business Meeting, the Secretary is
> the Alternate List Administrator. That means the Secretary not only needs
> to
> know how to do the Secretary duties, they need to know how to do the List
> Administrator duties. And again, it isn't just the nuts and bolts part of
> the LA's duties that are the challenge. The real challenge is being the
> "wise old sage" that is sometimes critical for the List Administrator. One
> of the realities of the real world and of ASP is that stuff happens. People
> behave poorly. Server's crash. Things go haywire. The List Administrator
> needs to be able to not just handle the technical side of those problems,
> but the LA needs to do so following the Traditions of Al-Anon as well as
> the
> policies and traditions of ASP.
>
> * Someone needs to belong to ASP for a year so that they know what the
> "flavor" of ASP is. Every Al-Anon meeting has a different flavor, or
> personality, and we want our trusted servants to maintain that flavor vs.
> changing it. Even if someone has been a member of Al-Anon for many years,
> they may not have an understanding of ASP and as a result they may easily
> do
> things differently that are upsetting to the meeting.
>
> * Our Officer/Steering Committee positions rotate on a 3-year schedule,
> just
> like the Group Rep, District Rep and Delegates do in face-to-face meetings.
> We modeled ASP's officer rotation after the Delegate rotation. We strive to
> avoid diluting this process in ASP just as the face-to-face meetings try to
> avoid it. Members that are willing to serve only a portion of the term are
> not interested in serving the full depth and breadth of the position. And
> when that happens, the group is faced with filling the position more often
> which places another burden on the group. Having said that, I will say that
> I have seen many groups go down that path because they didn't have any
> members willing to walk the walk of doing the whole job of the trusted
> servant. The result is that the group is faced with the dilemma again,
> albeit much sooner than necessary. Worse, now the group has MORE members
> that are unwilling to do the job because some feel that they already did
> the
> job - even though they only did a part of the job. I have seen several
> face-to-face meetings die as a direct result of this.
>
> * Opportunities for growth. One of the key reasons why the fellowship
> relies
> on volunteer trusted servants is to give members "opportunities for growth"
> that are important, even critical, to the member becoming the "elder
> statesman" kind of old timer that Bill Wilson talks about in the AA 12&12,
> vs the bleeding deacon kind of old timer. Otherwise, it would be so much
> easier to hire a janitor to clean the room and an IT provider to run the
> server.
>
> Hugs,
> Steve
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Businessmtg
> [mailto:businessmtg-bounces+steve=serenitysys.com at asp-afg.org] On Behalf
> Of
> Char
> Sent: Wednesday, August 5, 2015 7:15 AM
> To: steve at serenitysys.com
> Cc: ASP Business
> Subject: Re: [Businessmtg] update to the Business Meeting
>
> Melanie, I would apply for the Secretary position "IF" I had my one year,
> which I don't. What would the business members think if another took this
> three year position for one year and I took it for the next two years. We
> could both be trained at the same time and work together for the first
> year.
> Then, they could let it go.
>
> I realize this one year of ASP is for a very good reason. And, because of
> these reasons, it could be thought that I might not stay with ASP for a
> year. If that were to happen, either the other person would continue as
> secretary or there would be another election in a year. Is this an option
> the members of the business committee would be willing to consider?
>
> Char C
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Businessmtg
> [mailto:businessmtg-bounces+abcenter=netptc.net at asp-afg.org] On Behalf Of
> Melanie Serene
> Sent: Tuesday, August 4, 2015 9:39 PM
> To: abcenter at netptc.net
> Cc: ASP Business <businessmtg at asp-afg.org>
> Subject: [Businessmtg] update to the Business Meeting
>
> So I really have no update to report.  I haven't received any inquiries or
> applications for the position of Secretary.
> We do have one application for the Greeter Chair.
>
> Are there any comments about the position of Secretary?
>
> Hugs,
> Melanie
> _______________________________________________
>
>
> The ASP web site for ASP members is
> http://www.asp-afg.org/ASP/MembersOnly/index.htm
>
> For assistance with other ASP issues, contact the List Administrator, at
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>
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>
> _______________________________________________
>
>
> The ASP web site for ASP members is
> http://www.asp-afg.org/ASP/MembersOnly/index.htm
>
> For assistance with other ASP issues, contact the List Administrator, at
> list_administrator at asp-afg.org
>
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>
> _______________________________________________
>
>
> The ASP web site for ASP members is
> http://www.asp-afg.org/ASP/MembersOnly/index.htm
>
> For assistance with other ASP issues, contact the List Administrator, at
> list_administrator at asp-afg.org
>
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