The workbook
69 readable pages with worked examples, 110 fillable fields and forms beside their instructions. It covers costs, income, bills, cash timing, willing helpers and local approval checks.
FOR THE BROTHER ASKED TO CHECK THE FIGURES
Check Lodge Dues
How to work out a rate and explain what it funds.
Someone says dues are too low. Someone else fears a higher bill will drive brothers away. Start with one number you can check and one record you need.
69-page workbook, five-page starter and offline calculator. Digital files only. No subscription. Gumroad shows applicable tax at checkout.
Previously titled What Should Our Lodge Dues Be? Same product link; revised edition.
You do not have to settle everything today.
Many lodges have kept going with records spread across several people. This workbook gives you a place to bring those facts together. It does not assume the answer is higher dues.
In ten minutes, check a made-up example and write one request for evidence. With your own records later, work toward figures you can bring to a discussion.
You can work alone, with a brother, or in a class. Sample workshop scripts and a working-meeting agenda give a first-time leader words to use.
What your $12 buys.
A complete first practice
The five-page starter has a filled example, matching forms and ways to work alone, in pairs or with a class. It is also available at no charge.
The offline calculator
A separate HTML file for a desktop or laptop browser. Calculate with it, save your working-data file, then reopen that file to continue.
The PDF fields accept entries; they do not calculate. Open the workbook PDF directly. The separate calculator handles arithmetic. An optional ZIP collects the files together.
See a filled example before the blank.
Cedar Lodge is made up. Its figures show the method, not a rate your lodge ought to charge.
Choose the part you need.
This is a longer workbook, not a task to finish in one sitting. Start Here takes ten minutes. The page finder points to the cost, cash or meeting task in front of you. Optional history and future-rule sections can wait.
Begin with the complete five-page calculation kit. No email or purchase is needed for that file. The same kit is on Gumroad at $0 or an optional amount; Gumroad asks for an email to deliver it.
A positive annual result does not prove cash will arrive when bills fall due. The full workbook helps you check that gap, accepted work and the rules before any real proposal.
Before you decide.
Does this tell us to raise dues?
No. A smaller plan, a different approach or a lower rate may fit your facts. The decision stays with the lodge under its own rules.
Is this a Grand Lodge program?
No. It is an independent workbook by Robert W. Linn, PM. Check your governing rules, authority and approval process before any bill changes.
Do I need to lead a meeting?
No. The first task is one calculation and one question about a record. You can help check figures without holding office or assigning anyone work.
Can I use my phone?
You can read the samples on a phone. The offline calculator is intended for a desktop or laptop browser. Save your own copy of a fillable PDF and check that your reader preserves entries.
Are the future figures predictions?
No. They show what chosen assumptions would produce. They do not predict membership, costs or decisions.
Can I share the tools?
Follow the copying terms inside the workbook. Use its tools for personal learning, private partner or class practice, and internal lodge work. Do not publish completed private records or the whole paid workbook.
What if we already have a sound process?
You may not need this workbook. Try the starter and compare the samples with the work you already do.
From one working brother to another.
Robert W. Linn, PM, writes as a Past Master. Brotherhood of Purpose is his practical-guide series; Bosley Press is his publishing imprint.
Bring your own figures, questions and judgment. The worked examples give you a way to begin.