What are your club’s goals?

There are a lot of ways to run a bonsai club. One approach is to select a goal, or goals, to achieve and then measure progress against these goals.

The more specific the goal, the better. It’s easy, for example, to state that your club’s goal is “education,” but this can bring up questions about the focus of the education or which members are expected to benefit most from it.

A number of years ago, a senior member of the Houston Bonsai Society told me that the club’s goal was to focus on beginner education to get new members up and running as quickly as possible. This solved a common problem for many clubs about whether to focus monthly presentations on beginner education, education for intermediates, or education/entertainment for the most experienced members.

The job of experienced members, I was told, was to work with closely with beginners and support their goals of learning basic techniques and improving their trees. This struck me as a great approach to running the club and the club’s monthly attendance spoke to the success of their strategy.

Focus on beginner education – Napa Bonsai Club

What are some examples of goals a club might set for itself?

• To provide community outreach (by sharing bonsai with members of the community who may not be familiar with bonsai)

• To entertain and inspire club members (by bringing in high profile presenters)

• To focus on teaching techniques (by providing hands-on programs that focus on different techniques throughout the year)

• To improve member tree quality (by helping members overcome common challenges such as summer or winter care, by increasing opportunities for members to participate in workshops or work with professionals, and by helping members find material worthy of long-term development)

• To host events that enrich the community (by staging shows, conventions, swap meets, or vendor events)

• To produce the best annual exhibit possible (more on this in an upcoming post)

Bay Island Bonsai Auction

Having a clear focus can make it easier to convey the “point” of a club when you’re making a pitch to potential new members. Letting them know what you’re offering (and taking the time to listen to what they want from a club) can make for a better experience for all parties involved.

What are your club’s goals – and do you have suggestions for how to measure progress against these goals? Let us know in the comments below.

News & Updates

• If you’re looking to stock up on soil, now’s a good time. I’m currently accepting bulk orders for Double Line akadama, Triple Line akadama, Aoki Blend, Banzai Blend, kanuma, and hyuga while supplies last. For more information about bulk orders, including current prices and availablility, see Wholesale Soil Pricing and Information.

• I’ll be joining Bill Castellon and Randall Lee on a panel discussing how bonsai can inform landscape pruning on July 7th at 4:00pm (PDT). The event is hosted by the Aesthetic Pruner’s Association – learn more at the APA website.

• Sponsorship opportunities are available for the Pacific Bonsai Expo – learn more here.

• New episode of the Bonsai Wire Podcast – Jury secrets revealed: Eric and Jonas chat about what jury members are looking for in the trees selected for the Pacific Bonsai Expo.