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CREATE A PLAN FOR ACTION
Do you want to be a "do it" kind of person ?
Do you want to make a difference ?
Do you want to extend your leadership abilities ?
Do you want to feel good about yourself ?
THEN CONSIDER DOING A PROJECT !
Have you wished your community could be different in some
way lately ?
Have
you said, "I wish someone would clean that up because it's not safe (or healthy)"
Is
there something in your community that is making you feel badly ?
Have you met someone who needs help lately ?
THEN CONSIDER DOING A PROJECT !
It is not intended that Young General Assembly project plans be followed exactly as written by every project initiator. They are intended to be “food” for creative and analytical thought. Every community has different resources and different needs. Every person has different knowledge and capabilities.
Project Vision: A vision/ mission statement explains the larger picture, why the project is needed and how it relates to the issues of the day ( social, economic, political, religious, etc.). This statement can be used to help the project team maintain its vision, for fundraising purposes and for media.
Project Goals: One of the most important keys to a project's success is its practicality. In designing a project the planners need to find a balance between the resources available to them and what their needs are.
Usually a project is initiated because a few people see a local, national or international deficiency.
It is wise to discuss if the goal can best be reached with one big project or, more assuredly, with several smaller scale projects. For example, children in a very poor community planned a project to build a health clinic to fill a vital need. Their project was unsuccessful because it was too complicated and too expensive for the resources available to them. The children became discouraged and stopped their efforts. Perhaps, if they had planned to open a health consultation room in donated space one or two days a week, then expanded from that point, they might have been successful. Goals need to be examined thoroughly before becoming working targets. Once the work has begun, goals can be re-evaluated often.
Time Frame: Keep the time frame flexible to allow for delays. When the time allotted for a project is indefinite, often people loose interest or become discouraged because it appears no progress is being made.
Yet, if a time frame is rigid the pressure can cause stress, fatique and failure.
Project Materials:When beginning a project, take the time to speak
with others who have engaged in similar activities and can give the team an
idea of the materials needed, their cost, where they can be obtained, what could
be substituted, names of people who might donate materials and suggest alternative
methods of achieving the desired outcome. As well as materials needed to actually
do the project, remember to consider equipment which may be needed to manage
the project such as office space, communication facilities, printing services,
etc.
Project Team Members: If at the beginning the team is too small, then an active campaign to recruit others can be thoughtfully undertaken. Each project will require certain skills and understanding. If there are no team members with these abilities, then the team could consider finding people with the desired skills or allow time for some team members to get the necessary training.
It is very helpful to have team members act out their first meeting with someone (roll played) whose interest and support they want to recruit. Speaking about the "whys" and "whats" of their project in front of an audience helps team members to develop clarity and confidence. For example, a team needing donated office space and equipment could act out their first meeting with an office manager.
WHEN ALL THE MATERIAL DISCUSSED HERE IS WRITTEN DOWN, WITH SOME REVISION AND ADDITIONS IT CAN BE MADE INTO A FUNDING PROPOSAL.
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