Recent comments regarding firing volunteers generated a lot of interest from some very thoughtful Rotarians. I always enjoy hearing what other people think, even when they don’t see things the way I do. Many of those comments had a common thread that caused me to respond with numerous email exchanges. It occurs to me that it might be appropriate to share some of these responses with everyone who reads what I have to say. It is not uncommon for Rotary to have people who care very much and are capable of achieving a successful outcome for any task they take on; these people will volunteer for any task that comes their way. In the process they often overcommit themselves and the results are disappointing results for themselves and those who are involved. Unfortunately, they prove one of the great axioms of leadership; you may be able to do almost everything as well or better than anyone, but you can’t do everything better than everyone. A literal translation means that no matter how capable or dedicated you are you do have limited resources and time. These are the Rotarians we need to transition from doers to leaders. Capability is great, commitment is wonderful, but leadership is leverage. Great doers easily burnout their personal enthusiasm or they burn out those who rely upon them. It is through the process who converting doers into leaders that we find the solution to this great challenge. Every Rotary leader has a list (short or long) of those who never say no. We call on the people on the people who populate that list because we know they will take on the challenge and do a great job. But, great leaders are those who create other leaders. By making the extra effort involved in making doers into leaders we can expand the overall capability of the organization and the overall satisfaction of our members and we can do it without risking burning out some of our best members. Burn out is not only the cause of some wonderful people leaving the organization, it is also a symptom of failed leadership. Take the time and make the effort to create more leaders out of those doers you have grown dependent upon and teach them how to create more doers and leaders.