The Ice Bucket Challenge Movement

In last week’s blog, I discussed the characteristics of movements. One person, a “lone nut,” typically initiates movements. It is the subsequent followers, who are embraced as equals, who really lend power to the movement.

If you have not yet watched the referenced TED Talk on movements, take a look.

The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge was a movement the likes of which are rarely seen. I had the opportunity to hear about this from the inside over dinner last week with Lance Slaughter, chief chapter relations and development officer of the ALS Association. Together with Otis Fulton, Turnkey’s resident psychologist, we explored the idea of movements in the context of the Ice Bucket Challenge. What we found out was that the Ice Bucket Challenge met all the criteria of successful movements that Derek Silvers describes in his Ted Talk.

The Ice Bucket Challenge was started by one person—a family member of someone with ALS. That family member called out to and embraced others through the nomination process online. The important thing that the ALS Association did was to embrace the followers by celebrating them.

Lance, who has been with the ALS Association since 2007, said, “ALS Association’s role is to amplify the ALS community’s voice to acquire the concern, participation and support to the ALS cause from the other 290 million people who did not get challenged.” In short, the ALS Association celebrated the participants, facilitated their activity and got out of the way.

The Ice Bucket Challenge, according to Lance, lifted spirits and hopes and recaptured the imagination. He said, “Biggest impact of IBC? IBC can’t be undone. That so many people know about the ALS [Association] via the Ice Bucket Challenge can’t be undone.”