Executive Coaching, Professional Development, Training, and Career Advancement for Nonprofit Leaders in the United States, Canada, and Europe.
The world has gone mad. Or, so it seems.
Volatility. The world is constantly changing, and becoming more unstable each day.
Uncertainty. It’s becoming more difficult to anticipate events or predict how they’ll unfold.
Complexity. Problems and their repercussions are more multi-layered, harder to understand.
Ambiguity. Not everything is black and white.
Gossip–The practice of sharing information about people who are not present in a “casual or unconstrained conversation [that] typically involves details not confirmed as being true.”
We are all familiar with it. Every organization seems to be infused with it, and many leaders in the nonprofit world with whom I work believe it’s a good thing. They mistakenly believe that it helps grease the wheels of communication and that it will somehow serve as a source of valuable information that enables the organization to function smoothly.
This scenario plays out frequently at many nonprofit organizations: top-performing professionals gets promoted to lead a team but has never been trained to lead or manage. This is often a disaster—results suffer, people head for the door, and the new manager flames out (and may even get fired).
There are a few key reasons why some frontline professionals struggle as leaders and others do not.
Listening at the speed of sound;
More curious than an inquisitive cat;
Able to access and express intuition in a single blurt.
It’s Superleader. Disguised as a mild-mannered nonprofit professional, Superleader is endowed with extraordinary qualities and fights a never-ending battle for mission, impact, and results.
Sidney Mathias Baxter Coulling III, the retired S. Blount Mason Jr. Professor of English at Washington and Lee University died in February of 2016 at the age of 92. I had the distinct privilege of being taught Old English Literature and Poetry by Professor Coulling in 1981 as a freshman at W&L. It was the toughest “C” I ever earned (one of only two as an undergraduate). How I made my way into a sophomore level course (also taken by many juniors) is a testament to my naiveté–an error that only a greenhorn first-year student can make. [Read more…]
Running a nonprofit organization is a tall task. Many small to medium size nonprofits struggle with insufficient resources (human and capital) to fully execute their missions. Nonprofit leaders frequently have something on their plate, juggling multiple priorities and stakeholders. It doesn’t matter if you’re the sole employee of the organization, or if you have a large team around you; there’s one thing you can’t compromise on: “donor service.”
For example, how do you or other staff members respond when donors reach out with questions? What do you say when a donor sends you a complaint, expresses a concern, or makes a suggestion? [Read more…]
This week I celebrate my 20th wedding anniversary.
My wife and I have a wonderful relationship, and we live full lives as partners, parents, and professionals. We align on most things and rarely disagree.
There is, however, one realm where we do not align, and it’s been a source of friction for us over the years. It has to do with how we keep track of everything in our busy lives so that we honor our promises and commitments (a.k.a., keeping your word) to each other, as well as to our family, friends, and colleagues.
This week my family and I are moving. It’s a significant downsize in anticipation of my oldest daughter going off to college in a year. As a family of four, we’re transitioning from a 3BR+Den+Garage house to a 2BR+Den and no garage condo by the beach in Naples, FL. In preparation for the move, we’ve been “subtracting” a significant amount of stuff from our lives over the past few weeks–giving most of it away to Goodwill, or families whom we know can put it to good use.
Human resource professionals and hiring managers often ask me if there are certain qualities to look for when hiring prospective new successful nonprofit leaders that are likely to make them extraordinarily successful in their leadership roles. While there are no absolutes, Janice Cunning and I identified nine essential qualities through our personal experience in the nonprofit world as well as our work training and coaching nonprofit professionals that make nonprofit executives extraordinary. We found that there are a few characteristics that if carefully screened for can yield excellent new-hire results. [Read more…]
You are an extraordinary producer. Efficient, effective, and on top of your game.
Now, all of a sudden you accept a promotion within your organization to lead a team. Or, you were recruited away to lead a team in another organization.
Either way, the game has changed. Not only do you need to continue to produce results from your frontline work, you are also responsible for getting results from and through your team. [Read more…]