To ‘Lead’ Or Not To ‘Lead’ (Part I)

To ‘Lead’ Or Not To ‘Lead’ (Part I)

Jul 4, 2024 | Leadership

Is the past really past, and is the future somewhere ahead of us? The realization that past trauma, for instance, has a direct bearing on our mental health lends credence to the notion that yesterday is alive, a consideration that leads to a cybernetic complementarity that the future is equally real today.

Can we hold two seemingly disparate ideas?

The potentially contradictory nature of the above question serves as my segue to a discussion on how systems thinking enhances leadership. From a systems perspective, I do not believe a leader necessarily leads at all, but rather works to create a space within which as many inputs can be included as possible. This is a space in which people are allowed to make mistakes, an idea Ison & Straw (2020) indicate is a critical aspect of systems thinking in practice, as they rhetorically note, “Otherwise how will they learn” (p. 101)?

I find this question profound, because isn’t it the responsibility of a leader to create opportunities for people to learn? The answer seems obvious (at first), but this is not how businesses, including my own, Exponential Squared, on many occasions, are often run. If I am to step out on a proverbial limb and comment on the experience of other leaders or business owners, I believe it is fair to say it is a struggle (for many of us) to understand outcomes in context. I set due dates on various projects, and many of my decisions as a leader are directed to deliver them on time.

Am I creating enough space for my staff to not only learn, but to also make mistakes? Mistakes cost me money, and that is not a small consideration.

Systems thinking in practice can help me reframe my objectives as a leader, which could lead me to redefine the outcomes. Is completing a project on time the outcome I seek for every project, or is there something larger at work (play)? What is the social purpose of my company?

Systems thinking

As a leader or business owner, it is incumbent on me to help create environments within which my staff and clients are inspired, right? I am not just a business owner, however. I am a dad, a teacher, and a researcher among many other roles.

Do all my respective roles demand that I lead (and act) differently? Is the idea of a social purpose one that can bind all aspects of myself (and my many roles)?

Ison & Straw indicate that social purpose has different meanings in different contexts. One question I need to answer, then, is what does social purpose mean in the context of my life? A related question is how do I apply my belief in a social purpose?

A sense of purpose, claim Ison & Straw (2020), is “a common thread across the Blue Zone communities” (p. 86). Blue Zones, according to Talbott (2007), is the description given to areas of the world where communities have very long-life (age 100+) expectancies. Ison & Straw say that some of the health benefits that result from social purpose include a reduction of mortality risk, increase in resilience, and improvement in sleep among many others.

As a leader or business owner, it is incumbent on me to help create environments within which my staff and clients are inspired, right? I am not just a business owner, however. I am a dad, a teacher, and a researcher among many other roles.

Do all our respective roles demand that we lead (and act) differently? Is the idea of a social purpose one that can bind all aspects of our selves (and my many roles)?

Ison & Straw indicate that social purpose has different meanings in different contexts. In part two of To ‘Lead’ Or Not To ‘Lead’, I explore not only what social purpose could mean in the context of our lives, but how to apply it.

References
Ison, R. L., & Straw, E. (2020). The hidden power of systems thinking : governance in a climate emergency (Ser. Systems thinking). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781351026901

Talbott, S. (2007). Devices of the soul: battling for our selves in an age of machines. ” O’Reilly Media, Inc.”.

Wading at the Edges

Wading at the Edges

Jun 23, 2024 | Transformation

All my life, I have essentially waded at the edges of the proverbial pools of life–a condition that does not lend itself to transformation, an idea I recently gleaned from Braiding Sweetgrass (2013) by Robin Wall Kimmerer. A book that weaves Indigenous wisdom, scientific knowledge, and the teachings of plants, Braiding Sweetgrass is stunning in its simple wisdom that is really not that simple at all.

Is parenting simple? Is love simple? Are the truths peddled by various experts in any number of fields (business, marketing, real estate, etc., etc.) actually simple? Must every question have a definitive answer? Must every question beget a (pick your number) step solution? Is anything linear?

Perhaps the answers to these questions lie in the waters around (and within us). Am I speaking metaphorically? Kimmerer certainly is not when she says the following:

Among our Potawatomi people, women are the Keepers of Water. We carry the sacred water to ceremonies and act on its behalf. “Women have a natural bond with water, because we are both life bearers,” my sister said. “We carry our babies in internal ponds and they come forth into the world on a wave of water. It is our responsibility to safeguard the water for all our relations.” Being a good mother includes the caretaking of water. (2013, p. 94)

Kimmerer says, “Transformation is not accomplished by tentatively wading at the edge” (p. 89), and I cannot help but interpret this statement as descriptive of my approach to life. It has been easy to hide in my role as marketer, pitching ideas in service of systems and processes developed by others–and yet, what is my responsibility to others, to Earth, to myself now that I have completed my doctorate in Transformative Studies. Am I not transformed? Am I not now charged with a (sacred) responsibility to be of service to others?

“In one short life where does responsibility lie” (Kimmerer, 2013, p. 95)? Indeed, how do I answer this question? Perhaps, I can look to the apple tree for this answer:

The apple tree leans out over the water and makes for a shadowy arbor. In spring a drift of pink and white blossoms send plumes of fragrance wafting down the hill and a rain of petals on the water. For years now I’ve watched her seasons, from frothy pink blossoms, to gently swelling ovaries as the petals fall away, to sour green marbles of adolescent fruit, to the right golden apples of September. That tree has been a good mother. Most years she nurtures a full crop of apples, gathering the energy of the world into herself and passing it on. She sends her young out into the world well provisioned for their journey, packaged in sweetness to share with the world. (2013, p. 95)

I’m not sure I will ever look at a tree (or mother) the same way again. I also cannot imagine I will remain content to continue to wade at the edge(s). What can I offer? What can any of us offer? Questions like these speak to a scarcity paradigm, a concept explored at great length by Canty (2022) in Returning the Self to Nature.

References
Canty, J. M. (2022). Returning the self to nature: Undoing our collective narcissism and healing our planet. Shambhala Publications.

Kimmerer, R. (2013). Braiding sweetgrass: Indigenous wisdom, scientific knowledge and the teachings of plants. Milkweed editions.

Successful Fundraising Strategies

Successful Fundraising Strategies

Dec 20, 2023 | Fundraising

Successful fundraising at the organizational level rests on constructing solicitation strategies and techniques that reflect the capabilities and wants of current and prospective donor groups.

These strategies and techniques hinge on the development of an understanding of current and prospective donors, including individuals, businesses, corporations, foundations, and government agencies.

To develop such an understanding, collecting and analyzing data is necessary to determine the best fit for particular projects and fundraising campaigns. Some attributes of potential donors into which research should be conducted include demographics, past giving behaviors, existent relationships, and philanthropic interests.

Based on this research, which includes a variety of methods, project and campaign prospects can (and should) be ranked according to linkage to the organization, financial means (if known), and philanthropic interests (if known). These rankings can be codified into a list that serves as the basis for an action plan that lays out the activities that will make up the fundraising and development component of the project and/or campaign.

Activities could include events, one-to-one interactions, grant writing, corporate solicitation, digital (e-blasts and social media), and traditional PR. The proposed mix of fundraising and development activities will rest to a large degree on assumptions made from the research and the nature of the project or campaign for which funds must be raised.

Fundraising Ethics

Fundraising Ethics

Nov 29, 2023 | Fundraising

Effective fundraising and development must include careful consideration of the laws and regulations that govern such activities, which include interactions with donors, staff, and volunteers. However, these interactions do not cease when a gift is secured and acknowledged, as ethical practice and transparency also include reporting back to various stakeholders regarding the ‘return on investment’.

If a gift was given for a particular program, for example, were the funds used for that purpose? What successes were achieved? What if there were unanticipated challenges?

The very nature of a gift can also bring about ethical considerations. A business might, for instance, want to donate their services ‘in-kind’. What services can be accepted in this manner? Should in-kind services be recognized and acknowledged similarly to cash gifts? What about gifts of stock?

The nature of a gift may necessitate different ways to acknowledge it. For instance, some donors might want ‘top billing’, whereas others may wish to remain anonymous.

Aside from the nature of a gift and its acknowledgment, ethical practice and transparency relate to the actual handling of the money and all aspects related to it, including donor record maintenance, gift accounting, financial management, and audit trails. In other words, the accounting side of receiving a gift must align with what is promised by the fundraiser/development professional to donors/philanthropists.

Development In Nonprofits

Development In Nonprofits

Oct 24, 2023 | Fundraising

Effective development requires a substantial amount of input from different kinds of ‘players’ throughout an organization. For example, a fundraising/development professional needs an accurate understanding of the accounting picture to communicate fiscal realities to donors/philanthropists.

Development should entail ‘buy-in’ from the organization’s leadership, whose vision helps to paint the proverbial picture the fundraising/development professional is ‘selling’ to donors/philanthropists.

Effective development also entails that the fundraising/development professional solicit internal support from program managers, for instance, who can provide insights into ways in which financial support can ‘transform’ some aspect of what they do or the lives served by their program. Development may also entail reaching out to individuals served by the organization through the staff who have directly worked with them.

At its core, effective development relies on internal relationships throughout the organization that result in actionable information that enhances every aspect of the fundraising and donor stewardship process.