4. Define your goals clearly with group members.

Once you have your members together, it's time to sit down and figure out exactly what you want to do. Members might brainstorm for ideas, but essentially, you will want to try to answer two questions:

• What do we want to do?

• How should we go about doing that?

The better organized you are, the more likely it is your group will succeed. Chapter 8: Developing a Strategic Plan offers ideas on how to develop your plan of action, with specific advice on everything from setting goals to breaking those goals down into specific steps on a timeline that address the question of who will do what by when.

5. Find out what resources are available to your organization.

Especially if your group is affiliated with a larger organization, such as a school, church, or national group, there are probably resources out there that could help you. Find out what they are, and how you can get them transferred to your organization.

In addition to groups you are affiliated with somehow, there might be other sources willing to support a youth organization. Grants or mini-grants (see Chapter 42: Getting Grants and Financial Resources and Chapter 44, Section 2: Establishing Micro-Grant Programs) might be available from the government, private sources, or local coalitions; other organizations with similar goals might be willing to help you out. This support can come in many different forms, from money to a meeting place to free advertising. Ask around; see what resources similar organizations, either in your town or similar places, have managed to get, and ask how they've gotten them. The United Way might be able to point you to some resources as well.

And beyond all of that, the simplest thing to do is think about what you need, and who is likely to be able to give that to you most easily. Need paint? Try asking the owner of the local hardware store. Need publicity? Call the local radio station, and ask what their policy is for producing and airing public service announcements (PSAs). And so on.

6. Obtain and use those resources.

Once you've found out what is possible, go for it! And don't forget a thank you note to whoever helps you out.

It can be hard (and sometimes frightening!) to ask for money or help from other people or organizations. This can be especially true for young people, who might find the idea of going in and trying to speak with a bank president to be daunting. Remember, though, that you're not asking for help for yourself--you're asking them to support a cause you believe in. So square your shoulders and give it a try. The only sure thing is that if you don't ask, you won't get the help your organization needs.

7. Orient and train staff, adult assistants, and participants.

This step may be less necessary in some situations than in others. If you're developing an informal rap group for teen parents, there probably isn't a whole lot of training involved. But in any group, it's important that you sit down at the very start and talk about what is expected from both staff (if there are any involved) and from participants. For example, even in our hypothetical rap group mentioned above, there will be some ground work to do: You might want facilitators to do some reading about teen parents (especially if they don't have much experience with them), or about learning to be an effective facilitator. At the first meeting, the facilitator might then take some time to show the parents around the facilities, lead an "ice-breaker " so the teens will feel more comfortable speaking openly, and help them develop "ground rules" that will be followed in future meetings.

8. Get to work!

Now that you've decided what you want to do, go to it! With the hard work of planning behind you (at least for the moment--there will always be changes on the way), it's time take a deep breath and go to it!

9. Celebrate your successes!

Even if something wasn't the huge success you hoped it would be, everyone should give themselves proper credit for what has been accomplished. Organizing a youth group of any kind is hard work. Be sure to celebrate all of your small successes along the way. Not only do you deserve it, but celebrating will also help keep energy high, so your group will be able to move on to bigger and better things.