Authentic Passion: Why Lip-Service Is Slowly Killing Your Nonprofit
- Tom Iselin
- Mar 20, 2021
- 4 min read
Updated: Dec 11, 2025
This video is 5 min. It's all about how to turn "lip service" passion into "authentic passion" at your nonprofit to create a "Get it Done!" culture.
Authentic Passion: Why Lip-Service Is Slowly Killing Your Nonprofit
On Day Four, we wrapped up our discussion on recruiting and retaining quality people. Now we're shifting gears and kicking off a new series: Authentic Passion.
If your organization has ever welcomed a “passionate” volunteer, board member, or partner—only to watch their enthusiasm evaporate faster than a dropped Popsicle on asphalt—you’re not alone.This post dives into the difference between real passion and lip-service passion, why it matters, and what happens when nonprofits let their passion go flat.
What Is Authentic Passion (and Why Does It Matter)?
Authentic Passion is genuine belief in a mission manifested through meaningful action.
That means:
Showing up
Rolling up sleeves
Following through
Staying committed even when the initial excitement wears off
Without that? Your nonprofit begins a slow wilt:
Work feels like “just work”
Staff quit
Volunteers drift
Board members disappear
Programs weaken
Fundraising declines
The mission erodes
Authentic Passion is a First Things First principle because nothing in a nonprofit thrives without it.
The Problem: Lip-Service Passion
Nonprofits hear it constantly:
“I’m passionate about your mission!”
“I’m passionate about helping veterans!”
“I’m passionate about fundraising!”
“I’m passionate about giving back!”
But peel back the onion and the passion is often:
Veneer Passion
Looks great on the outside… thin and hollow on the inside.
Lip-Service Passion
Big talk.Little action.
Complacent Passion
Started as champagne.Now tastes like flat soda.
Sound familiar? Has the passion in your nonprofit lost its fizz?
Why Authentic Passion Is Essential
Because without it:
Staff lose motivation
Volunteers stop showing up
Board members avoid responsibility
Programs lose quality
Fundraising flatlines
The whole mission spirals downward
One or two people can carry the torch for a while……but they will burn out.
Authentic passion must be shared broadly, or the flame dies.
A Story: Sun Valley Adaptive Sports — A Nonprofit in Crisis
In 2005, I was hired to rescue a nonprofit called Sun Valley Adaptive Sports, which used sports and recreation to help people with disabilities. And believe me, “crisis mode” barely begins to describe it.
Here’s what I walked into:
Organizational Chaos
Six different mission statements
No idea which one was “official”
No strategic plan
No operating procedures
No policies
No job descriptions
No fundraising plan
No budget
But you know what they did have?
Tons of Passion… or so it seemed
Board members kept telling me:
“We’re passionate about helping people with disabilities.”
“We’re passionate about starting a Special Olympics program.”
“We’re passionate about helping wounded veterans.”
“We’re passionate about sustainable funding.”
Yet in six years, almost none of this passion translated into action.
Why?Because the passion was mostly lip service.
The organization was like a ship:
Broken rudder
No map
Sails luffing
Crew talking about the destination
Nobody actually trimming the sails or steering
Everyone felt passionate.Almost no one was doing passionate.
What Sun Valley Adaptive Sports needed was a plan—and the tools I'm going to share with you in upcoming posts—to get the passion out of their hearts and into their hands.
They didn’t need more talk.They needed action.
Key Takeaways
Authentic passion is action-driven, not emotion-driven.
Lip-service passion sounds great but accomplishes nothing.
Without authentic passion, nonprofits weaken quickly.
Passion must be shared across the whole organization—one or two torch-carriers will burn out.
A clear plan and actionable tools are essential to converting passion into results.
Summary
Nonprofits often confuse excitement with commitment. Authentic Passion isn’t about saying the right things—it’s about doing the meaningful things that push the mission forward. As nonprofits age, passion tends to fade unless intentionally reignited. Over the next posts in this series, we’ll dive into the practical ways to build, sustain, and ignite authentic passion throughout your organization.
Tom Iselin
Rated One of America’s Best Board Retreat
and Strategic Planning Facilitators
About the Author
Tom Iselin is recognized as one of America’s leading authorities on high-performance nonprofits. He has built nine sector-leading nonprofits and two software companies, written six books, sits on multiple boards, and has been rated one of America’s Best Board Retreat and Strategic Planning Facilitators. His work on nonprofit strategy, board leadership, and culture has been featured on CNN, Nightline, and in Newsweek.
Tom is the president of First Things First, a firm specializing in board retreats, strategic planning services, fundraising strategy, and executive coaching for nonprofit CEOs.
Board Retreats & Strategic Planning
If you’re looking for a board retreat facilitator or strategic planning facilitator who has been in the trenches and understands real-world nonprofit challenges, Tom can help your board gain clarity, build alignment, and create an actionable plan that improves performance and impact. His sessions propel organizations to the next level of performance and impact . . . and they're fun!
Board Retreats and Strategic Planning Services:
858.888.2278
