Your Guide to Becoming a State Officer

Sabrina Aebel, Western Area Vice President

Hello, Illinois FBLA!

Have you ever looked at the Illinois State Officers and wanted to be a part of the team? Well, there is no time like the present! I am going to give you the insider tips and tricks to becoming a state officer in a few simple steps!

Step #1: Do your Research

Before you begin the process of becoming a State Officer, be sure to read the roles and responsibilities of each officer position. Ensure that becoming a state officer is something that genuinely interests you. Additionally, begin to think about what position you would be interested in running for. In Illinois FBLA, the State Officer positions include President, Vice Presidents from each of the areas, Secretary, Treasurer, Parliamentarian, and Reporter. If you want a more in-depth insight, feel free to contact the current State Officer who holds the position you are interested in filling!
 
Step #2: Gain Experience and Talk to your Advisor

While experience is not a requirement for becoming a State Officer, it always helps to have practice in Public Speaking and Leadership. Being a state officer is a big responsibility and requires you to speak in front of groups of people sometimes, so it helps to have a little experience. A great way to gain some experience before campaigning to be a State Officer is to run for a Chapter/Area Office! This allows you to get a taste of what a leadership position may be like. Another important step is talking to your a; dvisor. It is super important to get permission before running for a big state office. 

Step #3: Build your Campaign

Once you have signed up to run for a State Office, you should start to build what you are running on. This includes writing a speech for Area/State Conferences, coming up with your slogan, and making a poster board or some sort of visual that you can use to campaign and meet people with. Make sure to be prepared and practice so that you can feel confident!

Step #4: The Election

When you are at your State/Area Conference, where you are being elected, you are at the finish line. If you have 5 people running against you or are running unopposed, it is important to deliver a great speech. This sets the tone for changing voting delegates' minds and reassures the members you will be representing that you are an amazing choice. But maybe the most important advice I can give you is to be authentically yourself. There is a lot of temptation to try and appear perfect nowadays. But people are voting for you, not an idea of perfection. So being authentic will always be the best course of action.  

Running for a State Office is not a little task but an ultimately very rewarding process that I haven’t regretted once. I can’t wait to see you all on the stage next year!

Good Luck!
- Sabrina Aebel, Western Area Vice President