If you are hesitant about running a U3A group, these notes are meant to reassure you. There are certain reservations that people commonly have about being a U3A leader. Let’s look at some of them:
‘I don’t know enough’.If your idea of a group leader is that of a teacher who simply hands down knowledge, then you possibly don’t know enough! But most U3A leaders are not instructors so much as ‘facilitators’. They encourage their members to discover things for themselves, and to share their findings with the group. To be a facilitator you don’t need to be an ‘expert’, but someone who can infect others with their enthusiasm.
‘I couldn’t face a group’.It’s easier to hold others’ attention when you’re the leader of a group than when you’re just a member. However much you may doubt your ability you will find that once you have your ‘badge of office’ people will listen to you with greater respect.
‘It’s too much of a commitment’.There are at least three ways of making the job more congenial:
- a) Co-leadership: you could offer to share the running of a new or existing (perhaps overgrown) group;
- b) Delegation: you could agree with your members that you all take turns at preparing the subject matter for each meeting;
- c) Phasing: you could offer to run a group for a limited period (say 5 meetings), in the first instance.
‘I don’t have a big enough room’. There is no necessity for a new group to meet in the leader’s home. You may well find that one or more of your members are willing to play ‘host’. If not, your committee should be able to arrange some accommodation for you.
‘I’m not very mobile’. This is an ideal reason to be a leader! Assuming you have adequate space, it means that people come to you, rather than you to them.
If you are tempted to consider running a group, why not talk it over with one of your committee members? If they happen to run a group themselves, so much the better.
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