When I was involved in various organizations, one of my many responsibilities was being tasked at overseeing recruitment. However, when starting an organization from scratch, the methods of recruitment and retaining prospective members are entirely different from one with a deep history and roots.
An organization with a long history is appealing to prospective members mainly by status and aesthetic alone. An organization without such status and history has to cultivate it from nothing. Since I’ve always been in male membership only organizations, one such influence on recruitment was the potential access to Women. Women are a powerful asset for any organization. While at the same time being it’s greatest liability. Like a fire, it can keep you warm or engulf everything you love and build in flames.
Another attraction point is aesthetic. How you look is just as important as how strong you are. Incongruence conveys falsehood. If you want to convey strength yet you are weak, frail or obese, an overwhelming feeling of hypocrisy followed by ridicule will surely follow. Uniformity breeds Militancy. Having a standard of uniform weakness will attract the like.
Investment. Even the smallest investment in something creates attachment. The most valuable investment is Time. The greater the investment, the higher the retention. When someone is invested in something they will protect it. Sacrifice is synonymous with Investment.
The purpose of aesthetic, investment and retention is circular. But what drives this circular movement is a conversion experience. I’ve found the best conversion experience is built on pressure testing. An example. A uniform aesthetic of membership creates an us and them culture. A prospective member wants to bridge the gap from being one of them to being one of you. This can be expressed through clothing and language. Clothing that the in crowd can wear but the outsider cannot. Language that the in crowd can use but the outsider cannot. Information and relationships that the insider can have access to but the outsider cannot. People like people who are like them. And people tend to not like people who are not like them.
Pressure testing can take the form of a difficult task. A task that will test the character of a person. A task that if accomplished will reflect the traits of a member of the organization. This task can be modified and suited to a particular individual. For instance if someone struggles with confrontation, then you will place them in direct confrontation for the betterment of the organization. If someone struggles with patience, task them with something that will test their patience to the extreme. If the task is completed, an overcoming is accomplished. And the result?
The result is bringing them inside the organization, giving them access. And if this process is long enough, tribulated enough, guided and punished for their failures and praised for their successes, they will be made in your organization’s image. They will look like you, think like you, and respond just like you. They will fight to defend you. They will invest in you. And above all they will sacrifice for all of you.
However, Divestment is the reverse cycle, a cycle of destruction when applied to the former. To be incongruent, to highlight the contradictions, to “do as I say and not as I do” is a sure fire way to destroy any organization. Divestment is for the outsiders, the alien world. I have seen organizations, religions, cults and clubs rise and fall over the past decades. One thing remains true, people need someone to look up to. Someone that embodies that esprit de corps. That person cannot be declared or appointed, they have to be chosen.
~Dread Zod
