Since the economy tanked, the nonprofit sector has been wringing our hands way too much. I think we’re past the hand-wringing phase, though. The shock is over, and many of our nonprofit leaders are facing the crisis head-on with their own leadership as well as inspiring others. Here are a few links to recent posts from around the blogosphere that will hopefully make YOU say yes to leadership.
Kate Barr at Nonprofit Assistance Fund challenges us to Be a Leader – Now
“How can you be a leader if you aren’t the CEO, Executive Director, CFO, Director of Development, Board Chair, etc, etc? By leading, that’s how. I know of many cases where a new board member, mid-level program manager, or finance staffer stepped into the void, told the truth, and brought about important change. To be frank, there is risk and a lot of work involved.’”
Elizabeth Clawson, Gen Y blogger extraordinaire at the Nonprofit Congress just posted What I Wish Journalists Knew About the Nonprofit Sector. It’s a must read not just for the optimism about the future of our sector, but it also calls us to lead differently by collaborating in these hard times.
“And just as in every minute of our 400-year history, we will not lose sight of our commitment to our clients and missions. Because in times like these, when the private sector stumbles and the public sector lags, our nonprofit sector makes the difference.”
Mitch Nauffts at PhilanTopic shares Seth Godin’s Ted Talk on Leadership. This will be the best 17 minutes of your life. Watch the video in its entirety. Fascinating talk, and extremely relevant to the work of social change. Seth says that we’re in a new model of leadership. The way we make change is not by using money or power to lever a system, but by leading. He talks a lot about how tribes are the new model for movements.
“You don’t need charisma to be a leader. Being a leader gives you charisma.” – Seth Godin
Yay, Rosetta! Hooray, Kate! and Elizabeth and Seth….
Inspiring tough love is just what this sector needs.