Toga! Toga!

"Hi, my name is Mark Linabury and I like to create membership organizations that people want to be a part of." This is how I introduced myself at a committee meeting recently. I then followed up with how it all started in high school with a club named Toga.

Toga was not an original idea. It was a revival of the original Toga club of the late '70s that my close friend John Hudek's older brothers were part of. We were looking through their yearbook and thought it would be a good idea to bring it back in 1983. What was its purpose? It was a social club more than anything else but it helped lay the foundation to a skillset for future endeavors.

First it had to be formed through an approval process by the school's principal that included having a teacher that would sponsor it. We needed to know our "what & why" to get it started. Toga was a spirit club and the purpose was to bring that spirit to events such as pep rallies and games. Then came the "how". We brought that spirit by performing skits and making banners. But why would anyone want to be in this club?

Let's face it, it was high school and there were people who wanted to be part of something "cool". And Toga was a "cool" club to be part of. To help make it cool, it needed to be exclusive. Not just anyone could be a member. Students were required to submit a membership application for consideration along with a $10 fee. We actually never denied membership to anyone and as you can see by the group photo, the concept worked. "Are you a member of Toga? You should apply to be a member of Toga!" created the momentum for the club and many new friends were made because of it.

So why am I sharing this story? If you are building a membership-based organization or business, a key element to its success is creating something that others want to be part of. More importantly, they want to invite others to be part of it too. I experienced this starting with Toga at Plant High School in Tampa, FL, and then again with Paradise Fitness Center in Guam. Our business plan was to have 1000 members the first year and we more than doubled it. I'm now experiencing tremendous momentum and growth with the Greater EMC Chamber in New Caney, TX. Always surround yourself with good people and teams. It's a great feeling to be part of something that adds value to others. It's an even greater feeling to know they want to share that value with others too.