Robert Fromberg
Editor-in-Chief, HFMA
HFMA’s 2006-2007 Chairman Joe Fifer stood on stage and spoke, but no one was listening.
Joe was attempting to open the 2007 Leadership Training Conference—the annual event to support HFMA’s chapter officers. About 500 people were in the ballroom. Joe is a strong presence and a strong speaker. When he talks, people usually do a whole lot of listening and nodding. But this time, no luck.
The people were not so much ignoring Joe as they were enjoying each other’s company. Everywhere I looked I saw big smiles and animated conversations. Everyone was having too much fun to stop.
Eventually, before Joe had to resort to jumping up and down and waving his arms, the audience members took their seats.
Later in the conference, I had the privilege to lead several workshops for new HFMA chapter newsletter chairs. It was my first extended contact with HFMA chapter leaders, so I figured I should start with the basics. I asked the participants what they saw as the purpose of their chapters. My logic was that the chapter newsletters should complement that purpose.
“Get members,” one participant said immediately.
“Educate,” said another after the briefest of pauses.
A longer pause followed. Then someone called out from the back of the room, “Have fun.”
If HFMA’s chapter leaders were forced to rank these three goals, having fun probably would come in third. Yet spending time with HFMA’s chapter leaders convinced me that they have figured out that achieving the loftier goals is a whole lot easier if you’re having fun. In fact, they know that segregating fun from their other goals is unnecessary and unwise. For HFMA chapter leaders, getting members is fun, educating each other is fun, and being part of a group with a unified purpose and spirit is the most fun of all. Fun is the joy they find in their profession and each other.
