Workbook:

Creating
Self-Organized
Gatherings
This workbook will help you easily walk
through the process of developing a
gathering that anyone can organize
anywhere. Enjoy!

© Tony Bacigalupo
tonybacigalupo.com
@tonybgoode
Revisit your purpose

What’s broken?
What problems in the world are you focused on helping to solve?

Who is affected?
Which specific groups are affected by the above issues?

Your vision of a better world

How does what you do solve these problems for these people?
What does life look like for these people after you’ve succeeded?
Conduct Interviews

Identify key people

Which of your existing contacts fit the description of the kinds of people whose needs
you want to serve? Look through your existing contacts, social networks, etc.
NAME NOTES

Send personal messages

Rank the above people by order of the people who you think are the best fit *and*
also with whom you have the closest relationship.
Once you’ve identified a solid 10-15 “top” people, reach out to each of them
individually. Ask them if they’d be willing to talk to you about the issue at hand.
Collect common language
What patterns are you hearing among the people you speak to?
Develop program ideas

Potential shared activities

What kinds of activities can people engage in to improve themselves in the key topics
in question? How can they get educated, support each other, or work on projects
alongside one another?

TOPIC ACTIVITY
Draft your gathering

Write a title and description

Make it simple, straightforward, and fun!

TITLE

DESCRIPTION

Send invites
Invite people to your draft gathering. You don’t need to make a big deal out of it—don’t
let things like web sites, logos, graphics, or any other fancy stuff block you from getting
the first gathering going!
Refine your program

Solicit feedback
What worked well? What could be improved upon? Ask participants for their honest
impressions, and note common patterns. Use this to guide improvements to your next
program.

WHAT WENT WELL WHAT COULD BE IMPROVED

Look for signs that you’re ready to grow

When people start coming to you asking if they can do their own chapter in their own
city, or when you start feeling like it’s becoming bigger than you, it may be time to start
developing a self-organized version of your gathering. You may not feel ready yet—
that’s okay! Keep going!
Checklist for scaling up

Ready to grow? Great! Let’s get to work!

⬜ Event procedure
⬜ Best practices
⬜ Event description
⬜ Invitation email
⬜ Signage
⬜ Put above materials in a shareable place
(Dropbox, Google Drive, etc)
⬜ Create an interest form
⬜ Point people to the materials when they register
⬜ Invite registrants to notify you when they start a new chapter or
host a new program
⬜ Cheerlead new programs as they appear
⬜ Establish a regular communication rhythm with chapter leaders
⬜ Create a regular time to revise and re-share materials

Congrats!
You’ve built something that can grow in ways you can’t imagine. Keep nourishing
yourself, keep looking for ways to deepen your commitment to your purpose, consider
your own exit strategy, and enjoy!

© Tony Bacigalupo • tonybacigalupo.com • @tonybgoode