Story is Vision

"The careful telling of the story creates ripples for everybody; including me" - Brian Stiller, Tyndale Seminary (from a FreeFORM interview).

Defining, redefining, revealing, and sharing our vision is one of the difficult challenges of leadership. There are endless resources on how to do this, but lately I've found the best and most intuitive way of doing it is through storytelling.

In recent meetings with two groups where we worked on mission/vision/values matters we experimented with beginning the process by telling the stories of those moments where we felt our organization was performing at our best. Out of that comes not only an easily emerging picture of what we most want to be, but also an energizing reminder of what we're all about. We end up with statements and stories that become central reflections for us and which we believe in at a deep level. And it's wicked fun.

As the appreciation for the value of narrative continues to move from the world of academic criticism and artistic expression into the realm of leadership and strategy the potential for better engagement of all levels of stakeholders is exciting.

One simple process:
-Ask your board/team/committee/etc. to spend a little in advance thinking about the very best moments and memories they have of your organization. these could include not only the work with your clientele; but fundraisers, staff interactions, resources embraced, board meetings, and more. the point is to uncover the times when you experienced the best of what you can be.

-Begin the session with someone telling the broad story of your organization's history. As they do; everyone is encouraged to note and post ideas from the story that might relate to Mission/Vision/Values. (We've handed out post it notes and put flip chart pages on the wall to capture these thoughts).

-Invite all to add their own stories of highlight moments; and continue noting the themes.

-When the stories began to run out, review everything posted to ensure understanding and adjust the location of notes where needed.

-Synthesize these notes to expose the strongest themes and try to turn these into shared statements or even a simple image or narrative.

Does it work? So far, so good.

This is the revised Vision Statement for Catalyst:
Catalyst is committed to developing leadership in compelling nonprofit organizations as their dreams become action to transform lives.

Puppy Love and the Power of Money

One constant topic of discussion with both funders and charities is the fundamental power imbalance between the two sides. However we try to minimize it, there is a basic reality that charities need resources that funders can provide. While I appreciate the outstanding efforts of many charities to develop mutual value in the interaction the tension remains. Charities have to try to satisfy funders and the relationship can be challenging and complex. I've written about this before.

A good conversation today with Lise Struthers at Opportunity International (in my experience, one of the most advanced charities in terms of working with donors)helped me think of this in a strangely different way...

I spent almost 25 years of my life either being or working with teenagers and one of the dominant themes of those years was the challenge of romance, especially that weird "just friends" stage. I can't count the number of times I sat with someone and talked about the need for a DTR - Define The Relationship. A lot of angst and confusion was abated when the two involved finally worked up the courage to say what they were feeling and decide together how to proceed.

The same is true for funders and charities. The power imbalance is most dangerous when there are unclear and unspoken expectations of the way things will be. Someone has to break the ice and start talking about things like:
-What kinds of communication will be exchanged? Through what channels? With what frequency?
-How much influence will donors on the use of their funds and the charity as a whole?
-Are there donation thresholds that change the relationship?
-How can donors understand the fieldwork of the charity without interfering?
-Are donors expected to be involved in promoting the charity? In what ways?
-Which people at the charity do donors access?
-What are the options for a donor to be involved outside finances? (board member, site visit, write for promotional materials, in kind or expertise contributions, etc.)
-What kind of access does the charity have to the donor?
-What should happen if the circumstances surrounding the pledge or donation change on either side?
-How can either side end the partnership appropriately?
-What will be done if anyone on either side is unsatisfied with things?

Cyber-Philanthropy

Making charitable giving more accessible and intimate is a great thing. Kiva has been standard bearer for changing the way we give. In recent months I've seen some family members become enthusiastic about being able to connect much more directly with people and issues. It may well be that start of a revolution in charity.

Over the holidays one of my best sources for interesting content, Fred Smith of The Gathering, posted a fascinating article about this new development. It leads me to a few questions: (and I'd love to see your thoughts as comments)

-How convenient should philanthropy be? What obligation is there for givers to take the time to understand charities more deeply?

-What will the impact of new technology options be on charity in the next decade? IS there a risk that flashy tools will outweigh quality work?

-How can (or should) "professional philanthropists" use our increased time, experience, and insight to help inform common givers? Should we post both positive and negative reviews of those we've worked with?

-What organizations are already exemplary in their use of technology to maintain connection with donors?

-What qualifies as a "major donor" in the future and what additional information or contact should they expect?

-How does this impact the power imbalance inherent in the donor/charity relationship?

So, what do you really do?

During a meeting today with Opportunity International, Lise Struthers (Governors Council Director)shared what she's told people who ask her what her job is. I love her response:
"Everyday I get out of bed and get to connect those who live in chronic poverty with those who live in chronic wealth".

Perfect.

Who's Eyes?

So much of the promotion work done by relief and development charities requires the viewer to get out of our cultural context and imagine life for those living in severe poverty half a world away. Most of us flip channels when Sally Struthers or some other spokesperson pops up in front of a mud hut surrounded by children.

Here's a much more intriguing approach:


I don't know enough about charity:water to endorse their work, but I love their creativity and vision to produce this piece.

Seminars, or is that Seeming Hours??

In the last year I've spent more time in a variety of leadership workshops and training seminars than ever before, including the last two days. I like learning and leadership is a topic for which I have a large appetite. So why is it that in the vast majority of cases I am checking email and facebook frequently after about 2:30pm?

Maybe I'm lazy, but from looking around the rooms I'm far from alone.

Having bored more than a few audiences myself I have a few respectful suggestions:

- "A=C" (Attention equals Contrast) I'll never forget arriving for the first lecture of one of my university courses to find a message on the board inviting us outside to meet under a large apple tree. The buzz among the students was remarkable and the professor worked hard to maintain that variety throughout the term. He also taught this principle. If you want people to be alert, do something they aren't expecting.
Sitting in the same seat all day, looking in the same direction at the same person, doing the same basic talk and powerpoint presentation pretty much guarantees we're going to tune out. The time I spent with Eagle's Flight gave an excellent example of how to do this right.

- "Passion + Perspective" I expect that if you've been given responsibility for presenting you are not only knowledgeable about the subject, but that it is important to you. Show me that what we're talking about matters. However, please remember that while you may make a living speaking and writing about a specific topic, the rest of us don't. It a rare expert who understands that what they offer is a single piece of our lives, not a universal panacea for all the ills in the world. Gary Collins brought refreshing notes of reality to his presentation.

- "Include, don't Quiz" It has become standard practice to invite people to give input or offer insights during the course of a session. Two way communication is a very good thing. But if you really don't want my opinion don't request it. I still see professional trainers who are expert in their field and full of relevant material who ask for participation but are really playing "Guess what I'm thinking", basically just waiting for us to say the magic words that lead into their next point. Frankly, it's a little insulting. In most of the seminars I've been to this year there are people in the seats who have significant experience and expertise to offer. If you aren't going to sincerely draw on that insight, don't pretend.

A couple closing bits:
-In 2009 Catalyst will be hosting our first seminar. It's going to be invitation only so we can focus on what we want to accomplish; and after this post I guess I'm committed to making it a worthwhile day.
-For the most part I prefer seminars to conferences, but I'd much rather grab lunch with the presenter than listen to her for six hours.

What makes a seminar worth recommending to others for you?

Ignorant Board Members

I am learning quite a lot about the roles and responsibilities of board members. I'm realizing how very important an effective board can be to the long term work of an organization, and conversely, how crippling a poor board can be.
In evaluating grant applications one of the factors we consider is the effectiveness of the board of directors. In conversations with nonprofit leaders, board issues are often near the top of their frustration lists.
This blog post from the good people at Strive reminds me of the legal responsibly board members hold, that is rarely discussed it seems.
And by the way, why would any nonprofit not have someone designated to regularly blog on their behalf? It's an amazing way to keep your organization and your mission/vision in the minds of your constituency. Not doing so, when it costs only a little time and creativity, seems almost negligent.

Two new techy toys

I don't think of myself as an early adopter of technology (I still have a cathode ray television), but recently I've been getting to know two software tools that seem to have a lot of productivity advantages:

Zloop is a web-based networking site that i heard about from Fred Smith at The Gathering. It allows remote users to post not only messages, pics, and videos like facebook; but also to form separate "loops" for projects and to post documents that can be downloaded, edited, and re-uploaded in a more current version. It's less fun and visual than facebook, and probably less intuitive; but for professional purposes it is very appealing.

Jott is something I came across through a distant facebook friend. It allows me to send messages by voice on my cell phone that are transcribed into text and sent to any phone number or email address I have set in advance. Best aspect of this for me is the ability to send a message to my email while I am on the go, especially through my headset while driving. the transcription may not always be perfect, but I can spell proper nouns to improve accuracy as I go and I expect to use it mostly only to communicate with myself though it can handle much beyond that.

Anybody out there want to share their own favourites?

30 Seconds or Less

I like long conversations, but I hate wasting time. One of the great challenges for nonprofit leaders is to communicate the purpose and value of their organization quickly, clearly, and with strong appeal. It's often called "the elevator speech".
I just finished reading a book that has a bunch of simple, practical helps for effective communication that relates not only to the fundraising pitch but to all kinds of regular human interactions.
"How to Get Your Point Across in 30 Seconds or Less" by Milo Frank is the kind of book I would usually pass by because I've been told many times that I'm a good communicator, but this week I've realised that I've missed some opportunities because I wasn't clear and concise enough. I'm probably not alone in that.
It's not a fancy resource and having it on your shelf won't impress anyone; but if you want to get a response from people, professionally or personally, it's worth the hour or so it takes to read.