Welcome to October!
It’s the fourth quarter of the year and for many nonprofits it’s crunch time. Financially, we enter the last three months of our fiscal year and we are seeing if our last dash fundraising appeals will bear fruit. Maybe we are worried about meeting our goals and objectives for the year. And of course, events and activities are starting to roar back after taking a two-year break from a pandemic-induced hiatus.
It can all seem so….overwhelming.
And if you ask any nonprofit and philanthropy leader how they are doing, overwhelmed is a pretty common answer. It’s almost like we are part of a club that is always overworked, overstressed and overburdened. Perhaps it’s all part of the gig of running a nonprofit. Perhaps we are all driven to be active and any downtime seems like a luxury we need not indulge. For many, busyness is part and parcel of who they are.
But, in our quest for being busy, we get overwhelmed, which makes us more busy, which gets us more overwhelmed and well you can see the downward cycle.
What are we supposed to do?
First of all, slow down. I know, it sounds like heresy. But, if you are anything like me, it’s when I start to get overwhelmed and overburdened, the silly mistakes start to show up and I end up spending more time fixing what I tried to do in the first place.
Think about it this way, have you ever been “in the zone”? That place where it seems like time at the same time, slows down and speeds up? A place where you are at the top of your capabilities and your work just shines? Did you get to that place by being overburdened, stressed and hasty? I am guessing not. You started there by being slow, methodical and careful. As you were working your skills, you gradually ended up creating and doing more than you thought possible since you were “in the zone”.
Also, recognize you can do big things. I can’t tell you how many smart, capable and intelligent people that confide in me that they feel like they can’t do the things that are in front of them. They feel that because they can’t do the laundry list of 20 things, they feel they aren’t up to the task. But, just because you don’t know how to do everything, doesn’t mean you can’t do anything.
The unwritten rule of this line of work is that there is NO book, manual, podcast, YouTube video that is going to give you everything you need to run a great nonprofit. Sure, we can share ideas and share tools, but at the end of the day there is no silver bullet. But, you don’t need a silver bullet. Most times, you just need to do something. Get that list and find the most two or three impactful things you know need to be done and get after it.
Here is the thing. I have talked to too many nonprofit leaders that have done big and amazing things with no playbook, no guidance, no directions….they saw a problem and they wanted to do something about it. Folks, you know how to solve problems. You know how to do amazing things….because you are doing amazing things right now.
And odds are….the things you HAVE done are way more important than anything that is on your list today. How do I know this? Are you going to remember the things on your list a year from now? Odds are, of the twenty things on your list that you are stressing about, you aren’t going to remember at least 90% of them six months from now.
Let’s finish 2022 strong!
Onward and Upward,
Bill
If you feel a bit overwhelmed and need someone to talk to about your life as a nonprofit and philanthropic leader…let’s talk. Send me an email at pinnaclestrategiesltd@gmail.com and let’s see what is going on.