Estimated Reading Time: 4 minutes
By Melanie Lockwood Herman
During a recent consulting engagement, a member of my team reminded our client that when an organization adopts a large number of ambitious, complex goals, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. Instead of feeling “doable,” success may feel out of reach. The key to tackling big goals, she explained, is to create opportunities for short-term wins, or alternatively, break long-term goals into short-term tasks that can be completed and celebrated more often.
This week I’ve been reading journalist Dan Harris’ wonderful book, 10% Happier: How I Tamed the Voice in My Head, Reduced Stress without Losing My Edge, and Found Self-Help That Actually Works-A True Story. As usual, I was drawn to the title of the book when I saw 10% Happier on the shelf at an airport bookstore. In this surprisingly funny book, Harris describes his journey from wanting to be “on” 24/7, to permitting occasional time for self-reflection. The book chronicles the TV journalist’s on-air panic attack and subsequent journey to healing and self-awareness. After consulting with several well-known self-help gurus, Harris eventually discovers and embraces meditation as a way to quiet the doubtful voice in his head. Of course Harris traveled a long road to find peace in his mind, but he conquered the journey by breaking it down and taking it one day at a time.
As consultants to mission-driven organizations, we encounter the full spectrum of workplace happiness and discontentment–sometimes in the same nonprofit! During conversations with nonprofit employees we learn about how favoritism can foil mission fervor. We discover that when workplace rules don’t apply across the board, the employee handbook is more wishful thinking than workplace guide. We also meet once-idealist nonprofit employees who feel that the commitments made during hiring and on-boarding were simply hollow promises. Instead of challenging work, management support, and the opportunity to feel deeply connected to the nonprofit’s mission, these staff members have learned to keep their heads down and opinions to themselves. These cultural calamities seem to occur the most when nonprofit leaders and staff members get bogged down with day-to-day work, failing to celebrate incremental steps taken toward achieving their missions. While nonprofit teams should be growing 10% happier as they move forward, some employees are falling behind, feeling sluggish, stagnant, or snubbed.
Disillusionment is a two way street. While many line-staff view their superiors as ineffective leaders, too many managers complain about team performance without taking any steps to change how teams are formed and how they interact in the workplace. Instead of judging each other solely on our tangible results, perhaps it’s time to focus on the “means.” How we work together may be a better indicator of success than you think.
As I read 10% Happier, I couldn’t help but wonder whether a new form of leadership is required in our increasingly competitive nonprofit sector: mindful leadership. Mindful leaders are those who:
Few of us are capable of making wholesale changes in our leadership styles and approaches. Instead of letting go of the instinctive managerial habits you’ve been practicing for decades, resolve to break down your transformation into manageable phases. Phase #1: be a 10% better leader. Strive to add “mindfulness” to your repertoire of leadership talents and maybe your employees will become 10% happier, too.
Melanie Herman is Executive Director of the Nonprofit Risk Management Center. She welcomes your feedback on this article or questions about risk issues at Melanie@nonprofitrisk.org or 703.777.3504.
“First let me congratulate you on a conference well done. I had a great time at the Nonprofit Employee Benefits Conference and walked away with some valuable tools and questions that we’ll need to be addressing in both the short and long term. Thanks to you and your staff for all you do to provide us with quality resources in support of our missions.”
“BBYO’s engagement of the Center to conduct a risk assessment was one of the most valuable processes undertaken over the past five years. Numerous programmatic and procedural changes were recommended and have since been implemented. Additionally, dozens (literally) of insurance coverage gaps were identified that would never have been without the work of the Center. This assessment led to a broker bidding process that resulted in BBYO’s selection of a new broker that we have been extremely satisfied with. I unconditionally recommend the Center for their consultative services.
“Melanie Herman has provided expert, insightful, timely and well resourced information to our Executive Team and Board of Directors. Our corporation recently experienced massive growth through merger and the Board has been working to better integrate their expanded set of roles and responsibilities. Melanie presented at our Annual Board of Director’s Retreat and captured the interest of our Board members. As a result of her excellent presentation the Board has engaged in focused review which is having immediate effects on governance.”
“The Nonprofit Risk Management Center has been an outstanding partner for us. They are attentive to our needs, and work hard to successfully meet our requests for information. Being an Affiliate member gave us access to so many time- and money-saving resources that it easily paid for itself! Nonprofit Risk Management Center is truly a valued partner of The Community Foundation of Elkhart County and we are continuously able to optimize staff time with the support given by their team.”
“The board and staff of the Prince George’s Child Resource Center are extremely pleased with the results of the risk assessment conducted by the Nonprofit Risk Management Center. A thorough scan revealed that while we are a well run organization, we had risks that we never imagined. We are grateful to know that we have now minimized our organizational risks and we recommend the Center to other nonprofits.”
Great American Insurance Group’s Specialty Human Services is committed to protecting those who improve your communities. The Center team has committed to delivering dynamic risk management solutions tailored to nonprofit organizations. These organizations have many and varied risk issues, hence the need for specialized coverage and expert knowledge for their protection. We’ve had Melanie speak on several occasions to employees and our agents. She is always on point and delivers such great value. Thank you for the terrific partnership and allowing our nonprofits to focus on their mission!