Roller Derby Sociology: Part 3 (Sociology Interrupted?)

So, if a large percentage of women socialized mainly with men before roller derby

And just as large a percentage were split between have a mixed social group and almost no one at all

And the smallest percentage is women who socialized mainly with women before roller derby...

It's almost safe to say that a lot of women in roller derby don't...actually...know...

How to communicate in a common language with other women!

And those that did before are probably a little confused on how to communicate with women who are so charged with masculine energy. (People like me!)

Having a job that allows me to visit leagues in their home territory this year; I've learned a lot about how people communicate.

And I'm telling you, if there's one thing I've learned...

It's that most leagues have the same exact problems. And 90% of them would be preventable, if skaters just knew how to communicate with each other better.

Nearly every league (initially) has huge upheavals over:

~Enforcing an attendance policy

~Choosing a Travel Team

~Where's all the money going?

~Are we "athletes" or is this "just for fun"?

~The Board or The President is keeping secrets from every body and drunk with power!

~80% of the league work is being done by 20% of the skaters and those 20% are exhausted

Every league goes through similar growing pains, it seems.

Some leagues split before they get a chance to grow, and then one year later...
Go through exactly the same problems!

So... here's where I get a little conflicted, being in the position of advice-giver-person.

Yes, I do know how to prevent a lot of this now, having been through it myself and observed so much of these things in so many other leagues... But...

Does anyone really want to hear it?

I remember being lectured as a teen-ager, being told
You should learn from my mistakes!

You know how young Bonnie answered that? 
I don't want to learn from your mistakes, I want to make my own!!!

True story.

 

So you see... I feel like I'm in a weird place and not sure how much I can, or should, try to prevent leagues from making their own mistakes.

Even though I (now) wish someone had helped me when I was a (much bigger) communication disaster!

It's something I'll have to reflect on before I write again...

Feel free to share your thoughts, and have a kick-ass-crazy-smartly-executed-eloquently-communicated-spectacular RAD day!

Parting gifts!