I am a sophomore and am considering running to be the secretary of my area for FBLA. I don’t know how to write a campaign speech, what to include in campaign booths, and how to campaign. This will be my first time running for a leadership position ever, so I am really inexperienced but really hope to contribute as much as I can to FBLA.
Please give me advice on doing any of the above. I’ll appreciate any feedback. Also, is running worth it or not? What are the typical duties of an FBLA Area secretary?
I also forgot to include that if I decide to run, I will be running at my area competition this SUNDAY. I did not procrastinate and was just made aware of area positions and roles recently. I don’t have much time to pull together a good campaign, so I don’t know if I should do this.
Hey! It’s the dude that hates me. Anyways, I think you should run if you want to! I think the biggest thing is your speech, make sure you speak boldly and get your point across. I’m not really into FBLA, so I don’t know who votes. Is it a board or just students doing FBLA? Also I found a link for ya:
In your speech, speak about prior accomplishments in FBLA, and you passion for Business. You will do very well. Also, make sure you know a lot of the members in the club, it’s no lie that positions are mainly out of popularity, so if you know many people, you’ll win.
Talk about what you would do as secretary (as mentioned in link above, but make it more conversational), why those things are important, and also why would you be good at it.
Like “One of the duties of the secretary is to take minutes and ensure they are available by the next meeting. I really feel that is important because we have all had a miss a meeting because of something, and want to know what happened. I will be very conscientious about keeping up with that as, for example, I run a blog and make sure to update it weekly and have been doing so for 2 years (or whatever you do that shows you are conscientious and are able to write).”
I am a current sophomore so I haven’t had many accomplishments in FBLA. I’ve placed third at state in my event and I’ve qualified for nationals but I haven’t attained any leadership position yet. Thanks for your advice Also, this is an area-wide leadership position (which encompasses multiple schools) so I will have to be running against people from other schools as well. Not to sound pretentious, but I have a decent personality and am always nice and kind to other people, so I hope that that will help lol
I know DECA and FBLA are different organizations, but the DECA newsletter DECA Direct has some helpful tips for running for office that might apply! You should have a catchy slogan, maybe give out candy, but don’t go overboard - just be yourself, let your passion shine through, and make the voters remember you. For treasurer, keep in mind that people in FBLA would know a lot about finance, so you can use your business knowledge to your advantage. I’d maybe suggest having an idea or two of how you’d improve your area’s FBLA, things that would appeal to other students and are also feasible, and maybe go over how you’d accomplish those (not super in detail, just an outline).
Good luck with your campaign, if you need any more help just let me know!
@hsstudent13 Thank you so much!! I’m not sure if DECA has three levels like FBLA: area, state, and nationals. I am running for area officer and need to campaign throughout the day of the competition. I don’t really know how to do that; do I make a poster or brochures? I’m not really sure what to do.
@needtosucceed27 DECA has district, state, and ICDC (internationals) so it’s basically the same. Are there any campaign guidelines on the FBLA website, or do you have to register through your school’s sponsor? FBLA is a pretty big organization, so you’ll probably be able to find some past campaigns to use as inspiration. If you could make some professional-looking brochures, it could make you seem like a qualified and organized candidate, and posters would get your name out there and help people remember who you are. If people remember you and you make a good impression, you should do well, make sure to talk to as many people you can and just be friendly but not overly fake (I’m sure you’ll be fine!). A campaign slogan or symbol would be something people remember and instantly associate with you. There are a lot of websites on winning local elections, and I’ve used them for school elections before (I lost lol but there were like 20 people running). Also, if voting is done online, you should make a QR code or a snapchat code that goes to the election website - some people at my school did that and I thought it was really creative.
