You are a nonprofit leader. Likely a type-A kind of person – pretty accustomed to getting 95\u2019s on your book reports.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s one of the reasons you have historically found yourself in leadership positions \u2013 when there\u2019s a need for someone to be in charge, it\u2019s like a reflex you cannot control \u2013 up goes your hand.<\/p>\n
You are also a learner. You always want to get better at your job.<\/p>\n
Maybe there was a book report (or in your case a board report) you felt was like an 85. Not a grade you are accustomed to. You look for books or podcasts to hone your skills, manage your time, become an even more awesome leader than you already are.<\/p>\n
In 1989, Stephen Covey wrote a book called The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People<\/em><\/a>. I mustn\u2019t be highly effective because I didn\u2019t read it until I decided to write this post. It has been a best seller for THIRTY YEARS.<\/p>\n Is that crazy or what? Thirty years.<\/p>\n So I figure he must be on to something. Thus, with a \u2018tip o the hat\u2019 to Mr. Covey, I\u2019d like to share with you my own version of this: The 8 Habits of Highly Effective Nonprofit Leaders.<\/em><\/p>\n Asking for help is a sign of strength, not weakness. Take an issue to your staff. Tell them you are struggling and see pros and cons on a particular issue and that you need their good thinking.<\/p>\n I\u2019ll admit, it can be harder to do the same with your board. But here\u2019s the thing. If you time and again go to the board with all the answers, they might admire you. But they will be disengaged and will not be the ambassadors you need.<\/p>\n If you are a board chair, I know you don\u2019t know what you don\u2019t know. Leading a board is a tough job to fake. Resources are out there.<\/p>\n Lastly, ask your colleagues. They are NOT competitors. Can you please get that one out of your head<\/a>? Share your challenges and offer your help with theirs.<\/p>\n Nonprofit leadership is \u201cshared leadership\u201d. If you don\u2019t share the challenges, you have a leader and followers.<\/p>\n In Lin-Manuel Miranda\u2019s Broadway mega-hit Hamilton<\/em>, Aaron Burr suggests that Hamilton, \u201ctalk less, smile more.\u201d With apologies, I\u2019d suggest that \u2018listening more\u2019 is a much more important habit.<\/p>\n In fact, I can\u2019t think of a situation in which this is not a critical habit to cultivate.<\/p>\n A twenty minute gala speech? Please don\u2019t do that to your guests.<\/p>\n A 1,000 word speech (that\u2019s about 7 minutes, by the way) that packs a punch and ignites the room? That is what I am talking about.<\/p>\n Less is more.<\/p>\n How about in a meeting with staff? Someone comes in with a problem. Try this: If I were not here what choice would you make? Listen to them, be a thought partner.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s another one \u2013 happens all the time. You spend so much time \u2018selling\u2019 a board member to climb aboard your organization\u2019s \u201cbus,\u201d that you don\u2019t listen to hear if they have the passion and commitment that will fuel them to be a fantastic ambassador for your organization.<\/p>\n And my oh my, how often nonprofit leaders think that a monologue is the key to a successful ask for money.<\/p>\n Cultivate the habit of really listening to what your prospect cares about, the questions she asks, what motivates her philanthropy. If you are too busy trying to make sure she knows about every single thing your organization does, you will miss all of that.<\/p>\n You probably assume that since you\u2019re a leader in your org, people know you are deeply committed. Maybe they do. But you have to SHOW IT. Regularly.<\/p>\n People need to be inspired by you. Full stop.<\/p>\n Because passion is contagious.<\/p>\n Think of it this way. The Quakers believe that there is a light in everyone. I suppose you could call it a soul too. I think about it like a \u201cpilot light.\u201d When someone decides to join your \u201carmy of the engaged,\u201d her \u201cpilot light\u201d is on. You have determined that this light is deeply connected specifically to your mission and cause. Your job is not just to keep the light on but to stoke it.<\/p>\n I was designing a strategy offsite for a board and the chair said, \u201cCan we have some time with the E.D. where he inspires us? We hear that he gives speeches all across the country and folks are totally engaged. We never get any of that and we really need it to be motivated to do our jobs well. But all we just get a report and then we get nagged to raise money.\u201d<\/p>\n Need I say more?<\/p>\n The same is true of staff meetings. The work is hard and it always feels like a steep climb. Your staff looks to you to remind them why it matters. If you are haggard, you give them permission to be haggard. If you complain, you build a culture of complaining. If you encourage powerful storytelling at meetings, folks will follow your lead.<\/p>\n That\u2019s why they call you the leader.<\/p>\n I was going to say that the habit is to \u201cask the right questions,\u201d but if you ask really good ones, they lead you there. Here are a few good examples:<\/p>\n You can sit at your desk and spend your entire day answering emails and putting out \u201cfires.\u201d Or you can meet a client, sit at the reception desk, answer a hotline call.<\/p>\n If you choose the former, you risk your \u201cpilot light\u201d going out. Choose the latter and you remind yourself what really matters. And that is as true for board and staff (non-program) as it is for you.<\/p>\n Get admin staff engaged in the client work. And then, when an admin copies a check that represents a homeless person\u2019s rent, there will be no margin for error for him. Because it\u2019s not a check. It\u2019s a home.<\/p>\n You want to be an effective leader, so don\u2019t dance around tough stuff.<\/p>\n Not inside with your staff, not with your board, not with those outside your organization, and especially not with those who stand in opposition to your work.<\/p>\n Grab a book called \u201cDifficult Conversations<\/a>\u201d and learn how to do it well.<\/p>\n Consider some professional media training (FYI – there\u2019s a GREAT masterclass on media training inside my monthly membership community for board and staff leaders, the Nonprofit Leadership Lab<\/a>.)<\/em><\/p>\n After all, it can feel hard to make your point directly.<\/p>\n Do you run a food pantry or homeless shelter? Get ready for folks to take you on. \u201cI saw that person in the food pantry and they had a great looking car. I don\u2019t get it.\u201d<\/p>\n You may want to punch the person in the nose. But learn how to deal with discomfort. \u201cWe are not here to judge; we are here to serve.\u201d<\/p>\n I have coached countless leaders through their annual reviews. They send me the documentation and then attempt to litigate every point with me, defending how hard they work, calling out the board for not working hard enough, but not hearing what is being said to them.<\/p>\n Defensiveness will take a leader down \u2013 I have seen it happen.<\/p>\n Own the decisions you make that aren\u2019t successful. \u201cI thought it would work and it didn\u2019t.\u201d You didn\u2019t return a board member\u2019s call in a timely fashion? Enough already with the, \u201cyou just don\u2019t know how busy I am,\u201d and apologize.<\/p>\n Why do people find it so damned hard to just say, I\u2019m really sorry? I dropped the ball.<\/p>\n Get in the habit. I often say that being a nonprofit leader is like being a juggler. But a juggler where someone keeps tossing more and more balls your way.<\/p>\n At some point, you will drop a ball. The effective nonprofit leader makes an intentional decision about which ball to drop.<\/p>\n If there\u2019s one thing that sets apart a great nonprofit leader from a good one, it\u2019s the joy she brings to the work.<\/p>\n On the good days and on the bad days, there is an underlying vibe \u2013 the one that comes with knowing that you are leading an effort to change something in this world that to many seems broken beyond repair.<\/p>\n How can we end hunger? Hey, join me! I run a food kitchen. We make remarkable meals based only on what we pick up at supermarkets. We engage with our guests, brightening their days. We have amazing and joyful volunteers who feel a sense of pride and privilege about their efforts. We all head home tired but knowing that there is something joyful about helping others. It\u2019s a privilege.<\/p>\n OK, so this one is the same as Covey\u2019s 7th habit. But it\u2019s so important and applies here too.<\/p>\n It comes down to this. If you constantly put the pedal to the metal\u2026 if you never take time to develop your skills and deepen your knowledge\u2026 you\u2019re going to burn out. You certainly won\u2019t get better at what you do.<\/p>\n Attend a lecture. Read a book. Listen to a podcast<\/a>. Take a class, online or offline.<\/p>\nTHE 8 HABITS OF HIGHLY EFFECTIVE NONPROFIT LEADERS<\/h2>\n
Habit 1: Ask For Help<\/h3>\n
Habit 2: Talk Less, Listen More<\/h3>\n
Habit 3: Exude Passion<\/h3>\n
Habit 4: Ask Really Good Questions<\/h3>\n
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Habit 5: Touch the Work<\/h3>\n
Habit 6: Get Comfortable Being Uncomfortable<\/h3>\n
Habit 7: Apologize More Often<\/h3>\n
Habit 8: Be Joyful<\/h3>\n
ONE BONUS HABIT I\u2019M \u201cSTEALING\u201d<\/h2>\n
Sharpen the Saw<\/h3>\n