Solidarity Sunday: It's 2024. Are you tall enough to ride this ride?
2024 is an election Year. It's going to be a wild ride. Conspiracies abound. Misinformation rampant. Unrest assured. Punches. Counterpunches. From politicians, media, employers, even from within your own membership. It's going to be a bumpy one.
Are you tall enough to ride the ride?
On this rollercoaster of uncertainty there is abundant opportunity for those who look for it. If you're feeling uncertain, you know your members are. And if your members are feeling it, you know those who have yet to join you are too.
Uncertainty brings a desire for assuredness. That is something a local union can offer in spades. A proven path, relevant training, guaranteed pay raises, and a culture of belonging. That is the kind of culture we can provide when we are at our best. And done the right way, that culture is a story we can sell.
Culture is an attractive thing. Principles like working 8-for-8, demanding safe work conditions, standing together for one another, having a work life balance, and belonging to something greater than oneself. Being able to provide for a family, not just monetarily, but with enough quality time to pass on your values and beliefs. Time for self-development. Personal, physical, mental, and spiritual well-being. Those are union principles. And they are wildly attractive if we communicate them the right way.
This ride takes strategy. It involves vision and planning. It takes all the tools at your disposal. It requires understanding your people's behavior, how they make decisions, where to reach them, and how to positively influence them. And yes it takes money. That's just the way it is.
But most of all, this ride takes courage.
Leaders with courage will always find a reason to take risk…and people with low courage will always find a reason to avoid it.
There is no such thing as a low-risk/high-reward strategy. And the riskiest thing is not doing anything different. Taking risks means you're going to get criticism. You are going to have people question your decisions. You are going to upset some people. That is the cost of leadership. That is courage.
Are you telling your story like it's 2024 or 2004? Are you still sending your organizers out with the same tired, boring text-heavy printed material that no one reads? Does your website look like it was built in 2008? If you feel that, you know the people seeing it do.
Do you have the courage to make the changes in 2024 that are necessary to effectively communicate with your members and attract the people you want to attract? Are you willing to invest in the infrastructure and digital architecture to be seen as a player in their future?
2024 is going to be a wild ride. Are you tall enough to ride it?
Working on your short game in '24?
Shorts are a great way to communicate a message in an economy of words. YouTube Shorts, Instagram Reels, TikTok, Facebook stories, all give you the opportunity to capture attention in an attention-starved world. UnionUp has terabytes of footage we can use to create cool, interesting shorts that convey union principles and the benefits of joining your local. Ask us about it.
