Nonprofit Leadership Training Series (video): Episode 5 of 21 - Authentic Passion (part 1 of 7)
Updated: Apr 24
Learn how to turn "lip service" passion into "authentic passion" at your nonprofit in order to create a "Get it Done!" do something, I'm in, culture.
Intended Audience:
Executives, Board Members, Staff.
About the Series:
Welcome to my Nonprofit Leadership series "How to Build a Gold Standard Nonprofit."
Whether you're a seasoned executive director, or new to the nonprofit world, this video series of 21 videos will give you a set of tools and principles (and good reminders) that will help take your staff, board, organization, to the next level of performance and impact.
The videos are short. There is no mumbo-jumbo theory, just wise advice and practical tactics you can use and apply immediately. It all comes from though lessons I've learned while building eight nonprofits over the last 20 years.
I'll be sending out one video a week. For those who want to binge on the series, or if you missed an episode, you can find them all (and more) on my YouTube Channel -- The Nonprofit Mentor.
Save These Videos
Save these emails in a folder and send them to staff once a week. Or, show one or a two at every board meeting. You can even use them when on-boarding staff, board members, or volunteers. Enjoy and Learn!
Tom~
PS: You can read more high-quality leadership content in the bestselling books below. (50% off)
by Tom Iselin
“America’s Best Board Retreat Facilitator”
hi
and welcome to first things first this
is day five of boot camp a leadership
guide to building a gold standard
nonprofit
on day four we wrapped up our talk on
quality people
we discussed why it's imperative that
you make wise decisions
to bring on and retain the highest
quality people possible at your
nonprofit today we're going to start a
new series called authentic
passion let's say you ask a ceo of a
fortune 500 company to join your board
you anxiously sign her on because she
says she's passionate about your mission
but what happens three months later she
decides she's too busy to show up to
meetings and has
no desire to raise money has this
happened to you
this sort of thing happens more than
we'd like to admit right
volunteers say they're passionate about
giving back local businesses say they're
passionate about providing services
and staff say they're passionate about
making a difference
well that's the outside of the onion
peel back a layer or two and you'll find
a veneer passion that's big on talk
and little on action lip service passion
Lip Service Passion
that's right
lip service passion the truth is many
board members
load fundraising in meetings volunteers
make commitments they don't keep
business partners fail to make good on
promises and staff often feel a sense of
entitlement
as non-profits age passion tends to
become more and more complacent and
flaccid
what was once the compelling force
propelling the nonprofit and the work of
the nonprofit did
becomes little more than a buzzword to
excite donors a hollow claim to motivate
staff and a worn out tagline in annual
reports
passion that once tasted like bubbly
champagne
now tastes like flat soda sound familiar
has the passion that your non-profit
lost its fizz
if so it's time to create a culture of
authentic passion
Why is Authentic Passion Important
defined authentic passion is genuine
belief in a mission manifested in
meaningful action and action means doing
and doing requires commitment and
motivation but first why is authentic
passion
important because without authentic
passion without people
genuinely committed to rolling up their
sleeves and working to fulfill the
mission
a nonprofit will soon begin to wilt work
becomes work
staff quit volunteers leave board
members hide
programming quality deteriorates and
fundraising dwindles
and eventually the mission erodes and
the nonprofit begins to travel down a
long
downward spiral of poor service and
apathy from which it may never recover
authentic passion is a first things
first principle because the success and
sustainability of
everything a non-profit does ultimately
depends on it
oh you can get by for a year or two with
one or two people carrying the authentic
passion torch
but if authentic passion is not a
holistic driving force shared by all at
your non-profit
those carrying the torch will soon tire
and the zeal and purpose behind their
passion and the passion of the nonprofit
will extinguish like a candle that's
burned beyond its
wick let me share a story in 2005 i was
hired to rescue a non-profit called sun
valley adaptive sports
it uses sports and recreation as a
method of therapy and rehabilitation for
people with disabilities
when i came on board as the chief
executive the organization was in
major crisis mode and that my friend is
an understatement
the founder had abruptly quit leaving
the organization
in turmoil during my first week of work
at adaptive sports i ran across six
yes six different mission statements and
no one knew which version was the right
one
there was no strategic plan no operating
procedures no policies no fundraising
plan no job descriptions and
no budget oh but there was passion
most board members were quick to tell me
how passionate they were
about helping people with disabilities
we're passionate about starting a
special olympics program
we're passionate about helping veterans
who've been wounded in iraq and
afghanistan
we're passionate about generating
sustainable funding
it seemed like everyone was passionate
about this and that
but little had gone on in six years to
make any of it happen
why because the passion at adaptive
sports was mainly
lip service passion adaptive sports was
Outro
a ship stuck at sea
it had a broken rudder no map and its
sails were luffing
its board and staff talked about the
destination it wanted to reach
but verify were willing to trim the sail
swab decks navigate a practical course
to get them there
most everyone seemed content to toss
about in stormy swells
drifting aimlessly what adaptive sports
needed was a plan and a set of tools
like the ones i'm going to share with
you over the next couple of weeks
to get the passion out of their hearts
and into their hands so they could
transform
lip service passion into authentic
passion
they needed to stop talking and start
doing
Tom Iselin
“America’s Best Board Retreat and Strategic Planning Facilitator”
Additional Resources:
Articles
Tom's Books, Podcasts, and YouTube Channel
About First Things First
Tom Iselin has built four sector-leading nonprofits and four foundations. He’s written six books, sits on six boards, and hosts a video blog and podcast. Each year, Tom speaks to more than 5,000 nonprofit leaders at conferences across the country. He is considered America's best board retreat and strategic planning facilitator and is a leading authority on high-performance nonprofits, and his impact on the industry has been featured on CNN, Nightline, and in Newsweek.
Tom is the president of First Things First, a business specializing in board development retreats, strategic planning, fundraising, executive coaching, and speaking. To relax, he loves mountain biking, hiking, skiing, tennis, and baking.
If you’re in the hunt for the best board retreat/board development facilitation, or the best strategic planning facilitation, it would be a privilege to learn more about your organization and the aspirations you hope to achieve as you work to propel your noble mission. Jot me an email to set up a meet-and-greet call.
To learn more, visit:
858.888.2278
Looking for answers?
I’m here to help. Contact me . . .
TomIselin@gmail.com, or 858.888.2278
