{"id":59068,"date":"2017-09-14T11:11:28","date_gmt":"2017-09-14T11:11:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.internetsociety.org\/?page_id=59068\/"},"modified":"2025-05-26T16:00:36","modified_gmt":"2025-05-26T16:00:36","slug":"start-a-chapter","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.internetsociety.org\/chapters\/start\/","title":{"rendered":"Start a Chapter"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
<\/div>
\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Chapters<\/a> > Start a Chapter<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Start a Chapter<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/section>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>
\n
<\/div>\n

So you\u2019ve decided you want to start a new Internet Society Chapter \u2013 great news! Before you start, it\u2019s a good idea to do some groundwork and think about what exactly you want to get done. From experience, we would suggest that you\u2019re probably better off starting small, focusing on the activities you\u2019re really passionate about, and building on your initial success before you attempt to tackle the more complicated programmes or a longer list of objectives. Here are three steps to consider. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n

What will we do? Start by setting goals.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Internet Society Chapters can operate on many different levels, and you probably have great ideas for what your Chapter can achieve. But in general, start by focussing on your strengths, don\u2019t try to do too much at once, and build momentum around those early, small successes. The bottom line is, you don\u2019t want to build a car if you\u2019re trying to cross an ocean, so let\u2019s pick one or two projects for the first year and build the organization we need to successfully launch those projects. You\u2019ll find, over time, that success tends to breed success and attracts more and more volunteers, members, and financial sponsors to your side. Early failures, on the other hand, risk driving people away and don\u2019t reflect well on your r\u00e9sum\u00e9.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once you\u2019ve picked your first project (and ideally you have a group of like-minded individuals who want to participate), the very first step is to get everyone to agree on exactly what \u201csuccess\u201d means. This requires that you set goals for the project that, to the extent possible, are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n