BY: Hannah Franz

“Coming together is a beginning; keeping together is progress; working together is a success.”

– Henry Ford 

Getting a group of passionate, talented people can be a feat in and of itself.  Once you have found those people, you have to make sure they are all committed and moving in the same direction.  Commitment can be shown by following through with what one says, making an effort without being asked, and being present and available when called.  Through a good friendship or relationship, you may have experienced these or similar behaviors.  This is the first step to making the relationship last.

The next step is figuring out how to get passionate individuals who come from completely different backgrounds working together successfully.  A good place to start is making sure you all have patience, are understanding, and have an open mind.  Each person must listen to one another’s ideas even though they may be drastically different from what each person had in mind.  Each person will disagree on many things.  Having these disagreements will lead to many productive conversations and meetings.

The five women of WIFE all have very different personalities and thoughts on how things should be done. All members are respected and given a chance to voice any concerns or opinions.  Bringing together this diverse group of women has lead to much success and some really great ideas.  The way we are able to work together along with our underlying passion, mission, and vision have kept WIFE progressing.

Another part of success is having the right amount of people working together.  For WIFE, five is a good number.  When we need to vote on something, there are enough to have a majority.  Five different perspectives can be a lot, but not too many to become unmanageable.  Looking at an issue, idea, or subject with our five minds can provide insight that two or three people may not be able to access.

Maintaining our working relationship with each member will always be something we have to make an effort to do. We have built and will continue to build a successful organization that continues to work toward providing women access to education worldwide.

First Fundraiser!
Photo Credit: Viceral Media