Thank you for being in touch with us with your question. We understand the challenges you might feel in such a situation.
We of course are not in a position to know all the facts of the matter, nor to offer a judgment on the previous board. But in your place, we would normally want to take a longer and inclusive view. That view would be based on the assumption that most everyone in your community shares some common goals — these would typically include safety, attractiveness, supportiveness, and a feeling of community.
That’s where you can begin. You and your current board might best focus on these broad goals. Granted that there may have been division over the election, perhaps for good reason; but presumably the election is now over, and you have now taken on the responsibility of leadership.
So how can you work together to achieve your common goals? To us, this can involve having and communicating a mindset of making a fresh start. You can begin with adopting and modeling a stance of respect toward everyone, and both welcoming and encouraging everyone’s possible contribution, regardless of what might have happened in the past.
More specifically, you might consider holding a well-publicized, community-wide, celebratory social event for everyone, where the emphasis would be on having a good time and enjoying each other’s company, and avoiding reference to records, bank accounts, or bylaws. If you can build or rebuild community cohesion through that event, it will make it easier to plan others.
We hope some of these thoughts may be helpful to you. Thanks again for writing, and all best wishes for both personal and community success.
