Ignite Your Internal Flame

At the end of January, I had the pleasure of speaking with our President Donna Herbel about various happenings with CHART. We spent nearly an hour discussing our membership and retention. For those of you that I have not met, I am going into my tenth year with CHART, but I have not been openly active for the past two years.

I am certain that my personal engagement in CHART was the catalyst for this conversation. Not to mention, Donna was looking for someone to write the March blog! Nothing is better than hitting two topics at one time! Well played Donna, well played. Despite whatever was the core driver for the conversation, I felt our conversation was not only enlightening, but also highly fulfilling.

This conversation made me ponder my tenure with CHART, and specifically why have I been with CHART for so long. First and foremost, I was fortunate enough to work for a company that highly encouraged members of the Executive team to participate in as many external groups as possible. We were a “mature brand” and the hope was by being prevalent in industry circles, others would remember our brand was still relevant. This encouragement helped cover the financial requirements of CHART, but did nothing for my own personal interest. My real desire to maintain membership in this amazing organization stemmed from my passion for developing others. 

Passion for the development of others is a unique calling. It fills your life with purpose and value. Despite all of the professional challenges I have ever encountered, providing others with inspiration and the skills to better cope with their own situations has always given me great satisfaction. It is this satisfaction that burns like a fire inside of me. I found a source for continual development of others at CHART. Particularly during my favorite part of every CHART Conference – “Live Ask My Peers.” It was during a Live Ask My Peers where I received my very first “Memorable Moment” recognition. I was able to provide a fellow member with guidance on building a franchise-based training program. Knowing that I had placed my thumbprint on this person’s career moved me greatly, and ignited my passion for CHART. I would venture to say that I am not alone in having this passion. 

As trainers, our companies look to us to provide tools, training, and development to all of those that help serve our guests. It is our JOB. However through CHART, we have the great opportunity to take the skills that help us pay our bills and use them to better someone else’s life. By feeding your internal flame for development of others, you start a cycle of positive momentum that resonates throughout our membership. I would challenge all our existing members to continually re-ignite your internal flame, and find how to contribute to another member’s personal development.

Lastly, I would invite all of our newer members to seek out and gain as much knowledge as you can from senior members of our group. They are a wealth of information, and you will find someone in our council that has previously encountered the same challenges you are currently facing. Finally, I challenge myself to re-engage in the group that I fell in love with and fueled my internal flame for so long.

Best wishes!