For the past year, I've been a part of the society council as the Active and Performance councillor and have been the Musical theatre social secretary. These experiences have allowed me to realise what is missing from the role and how I can change them.
As a social sec, I often worked on my own. I couldn't always bounce ideas off others without providing a broader context to complex ideas and strategies regarding social media marketing. It often made me feel stressed and demotivated because I could never really assess how I was doing within my role. Some societies have struggled to adapt to the pandemic and may benefit from hearing whats worked for other societies and more importantly, what HASN'T worked. For example, generic quizzes are a big no-no, but themed quizzes based on the members is always a win.
Regular check-in of committee members mental health.
While being on a committee, I quickly; learnt I could not please everyone, and this could often take a toll on my mental health. AS I'm sure, the stress of being a committee member could affect others the same. A regular check-in that could remind members to make an appointment with well being could benefit members massively.
More committee events
Creating events to aid networking between roles and committees I couldn't always bounce ideas off my committee without providing a broader context to complex ideas. Some societies have struggled to adapt and would benefit from hearing what’s working for others. When you're in your second year, you don't get the chance to make as many new friends as you did in your first year. Committee mixers would be an enjoyable way of making new connections in a light-hearted manner and benefitting committee members' relationships with other societies.
Having more union approved venues for societies
When not in a pandemic venues such as Pop World are approved venues for sport and not societies. However, many societies have the magnitude and ability to get in as many people, spend the same amount as the smaller sports teams, and should be allowed to connect with these venues.