No mistake: you are invited

A week ago I sent an email message to all members of the Portland Shambhala Center asking them if they would consider taking the position of Practice and Education Director. (I’m on the search committee, and the other two members were out of town.) I included the job description and sent the email using MailChimp, the new system we use for such messages.  MailChimp is easy to use but the way we use it still has a few kinks.  For example, I discovered that rather than going just to members of the Portland Shambhala Center, it went to everybody who has subscribed to our Newsletter and who was a member of Shambhala in any center at all.  Ooops.  Also the way I wrote it sounded more personal and direct than I intended: many people thought that beyond inviting and encouraging them to apply for the position, I was writing to them as one of a selected list of qualified candidates. Ooops.

A Wordle showing the most important words in people's responses.

A Wordle showing the most important words in people’s responses.

I got 19 very personal replies to my email message.  People thanked me for inviting them and for considering them for the position.  They felt honored.  I felt a little embarrassed.  I’ve worked in online communication for many years and made just about every mistake in the book, but not being clear that this message was intended for all members felt especially poignant.

When I thought about how to respond to people, I got to thinking:

  • My mistake was in not saying explicitly that all members were being invited and asked to consider the possibility of serving.  It seemed that I had done the right thing by mistake. All of us should feel invited to think seriously about serving our community (in one way or another).  I decided to expose and reflect on my MailChimp blooper.  Hence this post.

I gathered all the responses and have studied them to see what they say about us as a community.  Although each response was very personal, together they feel like a collective statement about our community.  What stands out most is that being asked to contribute to the community leads to serious reflection and consideration of  current and future possibilities.  People thought about the invitation carefully and their replies expressed a yearning to serve and to be more involved.   They acknowledged that serving leads to feeling involved in something important – to be a part of Shambhala.

  • Involvement is the essence of Shambhala as a community and an organization.

Several people expressed their strong feeling of indebtedness toward Shambhala – a feeling of gratitude – for all that it had meant to them and done for them.

  • Should I feel gratitude for my MailChimp glitch?  I certainly felt gratitude for all these thoughtful replies to my message!

People acknowledged that the P&E Director job is a big one – taking it on would be a big commitment. To explain why they were not making the commitment, they described other commitments they were making in Shambhala and in other parts of their lives.

  • It’s impressive what people have taken on in their lives and the obligations they are working with in the world.   And we are very fortunate when our circumstances allow us to take on a post in Shambhala.

People’s replies suggested that they were hoping to help out in some way.   In turning down the P&E Director position they cited where they were on the path, what their family or livelihood circumstances were, what their next steps would be, and what qualifications they thought they needed.  Many people saw the qualifications of the P&E Director as a big deal.  Given the stated qualifications for the position, they said they felt unworthy.

  • How do we square the basic worthiness we experience as meditator-warriors with the fairly elaborate requirements and qualifications of Shambhala?

And then there was the person from out of town – who would not have gotten my message had I not made my MailChimp blooper – who wrote back and included an application for the job!

— John David Smith

One thought on “No mistake: you are invited

  1. Dear John,
    I too, received the posting you sent out. It reminded me of many emails I get from political and non profit organizations addressed to me by name. This is common practice now. Anyway, I knew after viewing the qualifications for the position, I was “not the candidate you were looking for.” 🙂
    I enjoyed your reflection and recogonition of the many gifts you received as a result of your not mistake. Cheers, Sherrie Kimball

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