Become a Magnet Club for Newcomers to Our Hobby by Dave Jensen W7DGJ, Martin Buehring KB4MG

The social aspects of a club are very important . . . as long as it doesn't have the appearance of a clique to those newcomers who join later. I also agree there's nothing wrong with calling it a hobby. Dave

 

Yep. I am often astounded that some of my comments can be positive but some readers taken them as negative. I got one such email on this from this thread. Hence my clarification.

Carry on

73
Chip W1YW

 

Maybe they have a "chip" on their shoulder?

 

On a more serious note, I am in two clubs and both of them are great about being new member focused.

Great topic.

 

Sorry, you forgot to turn on the laugh track.

 

@AB0R do you remember Anthropology 101? Groups? Order? Pretty basic stuff that really applies to everyday life. Some folks are introverted others extroverted, and some are just bad eggs that are very insecure, histrionic, alpha-wolf, leader, follower, narcissist, know-it-all, etc. life, like the hobby, is a snapshot of humanity. That said, the common thread is an interest in the hobby.

"Now, the world don't move to the beat of of just one drum. What might be right for you, may not be right for some."

Personally, I think every new club prospective member should be greeted by GySgt Hartman. That'll weed them out! More coffee for "us"! See you at the clubhouse!

MO

 

True, and I hope you take it in the lighthearted manner in which it was intended.

73

 

Three Stooges Curly " Certainly, Whoop, Whoop, Whoop, Nyuk, Nyuk, Nyuk" - Bing video

 

Yep, I totally agree - I'm working with my local ARES team to try and make it a bit more accessible, but I'm at a loss with the club scene. I'm desperate for a good group of elmers I can learn from, sadly, some of the people I know who's recently gotten their ticket look at me as their elmer because I'm open to helping them.

I think shared experiences are a really good way for clubs to go. A couple of weeks back I was exchanging band spotting texts with another recently ticketed ham, lamenting the dullness of FT8 we agreed to go learn js8call, 20 minutes later we had a quick QSO with js8call on 30m, it was epic. We plan on doing more of that...

 

Now just think about how much fun it would be to do a POTA activation on 20 M!

 

It sounds like you ran into what a lot of new hams run into, and the reason why very few stick around for very long...the attitudes, aka "sad hams." It has made the hobby less fun and less appealing for years, and today's new operator just won't put up with it. Some clubs are manifestations of the attitudes, while others, like the one I am a member of, are friendly, active, and welcoming. I even saw some attitudes come into play in this thread, lol. A very positive, upbeat thread about making clubs newbie-friendly, and then in typical ham fashion, someone tries to turn it into a "debate" about semantics and FCC rule interpretation. Find your niche, ignore the attitudes, and have fun with your hobby! Good luck on finding a good club.

 

The problem is without strong leaders over time the jerks will win and ruin it for everyone. Once you identify those characters show them the door before it is too late. Really need a police/ex Master Sargent mentality in charge, preferably a Marine.

 

Luckily, whilst I may have only recently gotten my general, I was originally ticketed as a teenager back in 1993 in the UK - so I'm not about to walk away from the hobby, I recognise that at 45 this generation of hams will be replacing the old guard in the next decade or so and we need to keep the hobby / art / activity (whatever you want to call it) rolling along until that time, otherwise we'll be left with an ever decreasing circle of sad hams and an ever decreasing allocation of frequencies.

 

Great comment Pat. It happens everywhere, on every topic, in the ham radio hobby. Dave

 

I think that it's valuable and important to realize that a lot of clubs have "lost their way." They forgot, collectively and individually, why they got into the hobby, it's fascinating qualities and what it was like when they were a lot younger. Unfortunately, they are often the first impression available to the new ham. The really cool thing about 2023 is that there is so much available online that it doesn't make sense to throw the hobby out with the bath water. Find an online community or many and get back to learning and sharing. Many of these have on air nets/events as well as the virtual. QSO Today, 100 watts and a wire and the Bigfoot Radio Net just to name a few. And while I really don't think that the advice to grow a thick skin properly centers the focus of this very real issue, it is still a valuable skill which unfortunately, you will have to use on the air, eventually.
Sometimes the option to participate in "your local area" just isn't feasible; great thing about radio is "your local area" can be a big as you want or need. Best of Luck!