Follow the path of the unsafe, independent thinker. Expose your ideas to the dangers of controversy. Speak your mind and fear less the label of ‘crackpot’ than the stigma of conformity. And on issues that seem important to you, stand up and be counted at any cost.
Chauncey Depew         

Many nonprofit organizations, like most other groups, want to avoid controversy. Controversy is not always good for the bottom line.  So they avoid taking a stand- trying to walk that very fine line of being all thing to all people. I am not sure about the rest of y’all but I tried that in my 20′s . Trying to be perfect, and keep everyone happy. Did I mention that by the time I reached my early 30′s the stress and strain  from walking this tighrope put me in the hospital? I was sick, broken and honestly not good for anyone. In the end instead of making everyone happy, I made no one happy…. not even myself. I was pretty ineffective.     

 Many people who work in nonprofits are highly educated and they see the nuances of problems- being in the trenches every day will do that for you—which can also makes it hard to take a stand. They know that the world is not black and white. They understand  that there is always a qualifier to what they say and the work they do.  There is nothing wrong with understanding that all social issues are complex.      

But there is mostly everything right, with taking a stand. Drawing a line in the sand.     

Following the path of the unsafe independent thinker     

 Because many of the problems your organization are currently working on are complex. Complex does not mean impossible.  If it matters then as an organization you can, and should speak your truth.  That truth that only you can speak.  If the issue is important enough your voice will ring clear. You will do it professionally. You will do it with integrity. You will do it with honor.   And you will change lives.     

And more than likely it will produce some controversy. Because unsafe independent thinkers have always produced controversy, but they have also produced change. They have created movements.     

The stigma of conformity     

Wikipedia says that Conformityis the process by which an individual’s attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors are conditioned by what is conceived to be what other people might perceive. This influence occurs in both small groups and society as a whole, and it may be the result of subtle unconscious influences, or direct and overt social pressure. Organizations like people conform from a desire to achieve a sense of security. I am here to tell you a secret … Security is an illusion.  Nothing last forever…nothing good and nothing bad.  Security is not safety. Its not continuity. Its not reliability.  Helen Keller once said that avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Innovation is birthed from a place of non conformity. There is no security, only opportunity.    

Stand up and be counted    

 

 

You say you got a real solution
Well you know
We’d all want to see the plan
You ask me for a contribution
Well you know
We’re all doing what we can ~The Beatles

 

Martin Luther King was revolutionary.  Nelson Mandela was  revolutionary. Elizabeth Cady Stanton was  revolutionary.

Revolutionary refers to something that has a major, sudden impact on society or on some aspect of human experience. It unlocks something  in us that we may have never even realized was locked. It frees something that was oppressed, something we never imagined could be free. It lights the spark to profound change.

It changes the game.

 Are the solutions that you are working on, the plans you are creating, the ideas you are hatching, the gifts you are contributing  revolutionary?

•  Will these solutions, ideas or contributions move you into unfamiliar environments?  If so, it might be revolutionary.
•  Are you willing to  immerse yourself  in a different contexts? Are you open to seek out new partnerships or communities, or  make yourself vulnerable? Are you trusting yourself and asking authentic questions? If so, it might be revolutionary.
•   Have you begun to step into more  relevant experiences? Does  your work  give voice to the voiceless and power to the powerless? Does it paint a vison for what a better system could look like? If so, it might be revolutionary

I want you to think about what you can do today to change the game.

What can you do or create that is new, that’s progressive?  Being revolutionary at its core is about being  forward-looking, radical, cutting edge. Being revolutionary means checking your organizational ego at the door.Who gets credit is irrelevant.  The organization that  leverages the strengths, competencies and possibilities of  existing networks and communities is the ultimate winner.

 Its about advancing.

Its about the advancement of your leadership, tribe and communities.  Does your work  help people understand hunger in a new way…or racism or even social entrepreneurship- insert your mission here. This is not coming from a place of rebellion, its built on a foundation of respect. Its about creating internal structures built to support this game changing work. This is hard work and not for the faint of heart.

  What do you have to lose by viewing your work through a revolutionary lens of new ideas and concepts ? What if you ran your organization as a revolution and not just a process of evolution? 
 

 Because from where I am sitting, you have so much to gain. A revolution is never the end, its always the beginning.

One of the reasons people stop learning is that they become less and less willing to risk failure.
John W. Gardner

 

 John Gardner said a mouthful.

There is something amazingly freeing about not pretending. About speaking truth, taking that huge exhale and letting go…even if it means embarrassing yourself. Even if it means failing.

 Funding is often linked to success and we all  have the voices in our head telling us we MUST be successful or potentially lose future grants and donations, or lose volunteers or damage your brand.

  It is hard for organizations to admit to their mistakes, making it even more difficult to learn from them. We cannot ask tough questions about our mistakes if we do not admit to having them.  I am here to tell you something that we in the nonprofit world sometime forget- opportunity and risk go hand in hand. They go together, like peas and carrots.

Risk-chance of something going wrong: the danger that injury, damage, or loss will occur. Risks are simply future issues that can be avoided or mitigated, rather than present problems that must be immediately addressed.

When taking a risk there is also a chance of something going absolutely right.

I believe in taking calculated risks in order to learn what works best.

By iterating and making strategic adjustments we discover what works and, more importantly, what doesn’t.  Sometimes this means making mistakes, but it’s how we manage these mistakes that produces positive results.

The mistake itself is not important. Everyone makes mistakes! It is the conditions that led to the mistake which are most important. It is how we reflect on these conditions that determines the future value of the mistake. And it is how we grow, learn and change as a result of the mistake that can turn failure into success. After all, the only true mistake is the one we never learn from.

Ultimately it’s not about making mistakes. It is about lessons learned and growing into a stronger, more effective organization.  It is our job to hold all of us in the nonprofit world accountable. To leverage the learning’s of the many, to  share our failures with dignity and courage, and keep asking tough questions. We must have courage to bet on our ideas, to take the calculated risk, and to act. Everyday living requires courage if life is to be effective and bring happiness.

In the words of Erica Jong-If you don’t risk anything, you risk even more.

True genius resides in the capacity for evaluation of uncertain, hazardous, and conflicting information.
Winston Churchill

What do we want to know? What do we want to count? 

What we want to know is linked to what we think is important. For most non profits,what we think is important is linked to our values.

 What do you monitor? What do you evaluate… and why?

When you monitor or evaluate anything, you are saying to the world  “THIS” is what I value, this is what I care about, this is what I invest in.  Before I go on I need you to sit down. I am about to say something that many of you may not agree with. 

Most NPO’s can not handle the truth. They are not ready to ask the hard questions or do the dirty introspection required.

So, here is the critical question: Is what we are doing and how we are doing it meeting the spirit, tone and heart of  our values? 

We need to take a step back  and see if our monitoring and evaluation systems give us the only information that truly matters: 

• Who is benefiting from what we do?  How much are they benefiting? 
• Are beneficiaries passive recipients or does the process enable them to have some control over their lives, are they actively engaged?
• Are there lessons in what we are doing that have a broader impact than just what is happening on our project?Are we capturing these lessons?
• Can what we are doing be sustained in some way for the long-term, or will the impact of our work cease when we leave?

What’s most import- the product or the process?

Although the term “monitoring and evaluation” tends to get run together as if it is only one thing, monitoring and evaluation are, in fact, two distinct sets of organisational activities, related but not identical.  

Monitoring is the collection and analysis of information as a project progresses. It is  all about improving the efficiency and effectiveness of a project or organisation.  It helps to keep the work on track, and can let management know when things are going wrong.  If done properly, it is an invaluable tool for good management, and it provides a useful base for evaluation.  It enables you to determine whether the resources you have available are sufficient and are being well used, whether the capacity you have is sufficient and appropriate, and whether you are doing what you planned to do.

Evaluation is the comparison of actual project impacts against the agreed strategic plans. 

They both should at all times be focusing on:

• Efficiency 
• Effectiveness 
• Impact

  Why do monitoring and evaluation?

In many organisations, “monitoring and evaluation” is something that that is seen as a donor requirement rather than a management tool.  Donors have every right  to know whether their money is being properly spent, and used effectively.  But the most important use of monitoring and evaluation should be for the organisation or project itself to see how it is doing against objectives, whether it is having an impact, whether it is working efficiently, and to learn how to do it better and in some cases specifically to manage risk.   Getting something wrong is not a crime.  Failing to learn from past mistakes because you are not monitoring and evaluating, is.  

Here is where I get on my soapbox and I take us back to the title of the post. You can’t handle the truth.

I am not sure  NPO’s want to know the truth.  Because knowing the TRUTH means we have to act. We work with real  people with real challenges.  This makes our work  complex and messy and most days swimming in the “grey”. Projects that we think will take a year sometime take three. And knowing the facts, having that hard data at our fingertips mean we have to make hard choices. Really hard decisions about funding and staffing and resource allocation.In these tight economic times these discussion become even harder to have.So sit up straight and listen, see, hear and speak your truth.  Push yourselves and your boards and your leadership to invest in evaluation and monitoring tools.  Create a culture that values data.

 We have to advocate for solutions based on analysis. Bold vision and planning  have to be linked to financial support and  leadership needs good information so they can question assumptions and challenge conclusions. 

 So we all can do good, better.

Storytelling is not what I do for a living – it is how I do all that I do while I am living.
Donald Davis

 

Desiree at 5 years old was a hoot. I was a pistol. So much energy and so inquisitive. And so cute! I am sure my parents and teachers may have a different story. They may tell a story of   stubbornness and tantrums.

Desiree at  15 years  old was…angry. I was surly and intense. Needing something more, but unable to articulate my needs and desire. So I just tapped into the anger and my loathing for all around me-lovely.  My mother the saint probably saw a different story, a more compassionate story of a teenager finding her way and a sense of her self.

Desiree at 25 was married and a new mom. I was confused  and excited and hopeful about what the future would bring. My then husband probably saw an overwhelmed new mother trying to balance  family and career and never feeling satisfied with either.

I changed. I evolved. 

 The change was good and nourishing. The change was painful and hard. The change was beautiful and chaotic. And lets be honest at times it was plain ugly. 

 And as I evolved my story evolved, it became richer and deeper. More complex and more authentic.

Storytelling is the most powerful way of putting ideas into the world.  Not only the stories I told others but the stories I told myself about who I was and who I would become and what I valued.

You see where I am going.

So I ask you…

•  What are the stories you are telling about yourself? What are the stories you tell your donors or the communities you serve?
•  Are the stories you tell about your organization or the communities you work with evolving, have they become richer and deeper with time?
•  Are the images and messages you communicate growing, and changing?   Are these messages speaking your current truth, reflecting fully your current realty?
• What are the values shinning through your stories? What ideas are you putting into the world?

 When storytelling is done right it is skillful and authentic, it can be used  as a powerful leadership tool. It can be used to achieve a variety of purposes, including sparking action, communicating who you are, transmitting your brand, sharing knowledge, getting collaboration, transmitting values, taming the grapevine or leading people into the future.

The more closely aligned your storytelling is to your culture, truth and reality and the communities you serve, the more powerful your stories become to the listener.The more contrived or manufactured stories tend to be, the more they generate anti-stories, provoking cynicism, mistrust and ridicule and ultimately the lost of  confidence in your organization.

Organizations and the communities they work with are dynamic entities. No donor, no volunteer, no board member expects  it  to be the same organization it was  5-10-15 years ago. They expect growth and evolution because its the only you can meet the current needs and tackle relevant issues.  As we change as people and organizations, our stories and the stories we tell  the world need to change with us.

 These stories must tell who we are as well as who we want to become.

Let us not pray to be sheltered from dangers but to be fearless when facing them.
Rabindranath Tagore

What if you were fearless?

What if  WE in the nonprofit world were absolutely, no holds barred, balls to the walls FEARLESS in all that we did?

 What if you said no to some donors-you heard me, even in this economy- so you could make a space for new donors? The new ones that are better aligned with your strategy and focus and your future vision. The ones that want to collaborate and communicate effectively so you can do philanthropy better.

What if your mission and vision was bigger and badder and bolder than anything you have ever heard in all your days? Not because you want all the glory but because you are willing to tackle the big complex problems that require big complex solutions and your playing small does not serve the world.

What if you began to partner with communities, neighborhoods or populations that were not well liked or stigmatized because in your HEART of HEARTS you knew that is where you needed to be? That those challenges were the ones your organization needed to face.

What if you killed some legacy programs, you heard me STOPPED them– so you could create more relevant and effective ones? Is a 30 year old program still effective and relevant? Maybe…Maybe not, be bold enough to question and brave enough to act.

What if you let some staff, volunteers or leadership leave your organization….maybe even the Founder?  Not because you do not value their wisdom and institutional knowledge or their years of sacrifice, but because a part of holistic growth means making space for new voices,  and new vision designed by the next generation…and sometime it’s just time for people to go.

What if your organization was fearless?

What if you stood up and integrated political and educational advocacy into every aspect of your organization?  Because you know that for justice to be served laws need to change.

What if you invested in technology? Not played at investing, but did it- whole hog, because you know that your amazing staff has made miracles happen with 20 year old databases and little technological support. You can only imagine the magic they could spread with the right tools in their capable hands. Let’s not even discuss what they could do with new media utilized strategically to leverage resources.

What if you invested in R&D? What if you had a room full of crazy creatives that were able to try and fail.. and try and fail over and over again until they succeed in ways you could never imagine. What if your organization valued R&D like Apple or HP or Google?

What if you nurtured yourself and your employees better? What if you let your staff take art classes, work remotely, work flex hours, bring their pets to work, create their own job titles, take mission leave beyond regular vacation- to  help them intentionally step away from  the creation of strategy or the raising of dollars so they could reconnect and renew their hearts  and minds. This is a marathon, not a sprint.

What if it was time for a re-invention? The old ways are no longer working or getting you the required results. Can you look yourself in the eye and admit it’s time to create a new life, new vision, and new mission….to enter a new space?

What if you stayed hungry and foolish? You know like you were in the very beginning when it was 3 of you in your garage working day and night to push your mission forward.

What if you were radical?

What if you were bold?

What if you were brave?

What if you were fearless?

I’m a reflection of the community.
Tupac Shakur

I am about building community. 

 I am about building strong, safe, educated, healthy communities and I have dedicated my 20+ years in the non profit world to this work. 

20+ years of walking the walk… and talking the talk. 20 + years of  successes, failures and hard lessons. I am working to build a movement for social change. A  movement that supports the assets and gifts of the community members. Communities that reflect their values, their wants and their needs. This is the work I love and this is the work I will do until the day I die.

 I am in it to win it. Not for me, but for you. Because when communities are healthy- we all win.

 In the past I have worked for some pretty well known organizations and institutions that focused on building  community cohesion  and power both domestically and internationally.   I will continue to do this important work, but now I will do it working for my own company, The Adaway Group.

My life is my message.

Many ask me why do I do this work. Its simple, you need the whole community to raise children and feed the hungry. I take it personally when people who are hungry can not eat, when kids can not attend school, when families are displaced by war. I want to continue to put my faith and love into action and I want to provide others with that same  opportunity. A simple belief in the respect and inherit  dignity of others.

Many also ask what or who shaped my commitment to this work. I traveled the world by myself  at the age of 16. I was never the same. It was during that time I first learned of  both our inter connectedness and interdependence in the world today,and this was way before the Internet was invented. Pre- face book and twitter my friends. The women I see walking miles to get clean water and the men I see saving what  little money they have  so that their daughters can go to a better school.  Hell, so their daughter can go TO school- they shape my continued commitment to social justice.

In a post I wrote last fall I said: I want my life’s message not to be about Desiree but Desiree AND the families, communities, and individuals  that have I worked in partnership with over the years. The children that received services and the mothers that had access to health care because of my actions and my choices, my skills and my commitment to change. I want my message to be that I actively helped to create a culture of service in this country. That I was on the front line when the tide changed.

Eight months later, I stand by that statement.

So here is my commitment to you, the clients I work with and the communities they serve.

• I will continue to be credible, trustworthy and accountable to the communities I serve.
• I will be bold in action to help organizations effectively accomplish their vision.
• I will search high and low and never stop seeking out people of extraordinary talent and commitment to collaborate and partner with in this important work.
•  I will continue to be an advocate for your causes offering candor,insight and creativity so we can make change happen.

You can check out my newly updated services page if you want to learn more.  http://desireeadaway.com/services/

 People in communities know what they need. I am just a supporting member  helping  communities globally make their vision a reality.

We must ensure that the global market is embedded in broadly shared values and practices that reflect global social needs, and that all the world’s people share the benefits of globalization.
Kofi Annan

I read the phrase “world-mindedness in a children’s book a few years back. It has always stayed with me. I like it.

It’s the attitude that I have always been attracted to- this approach to life that our planet is actually a village and we share this village with our neighbors. We know who our neighbors are, their dreams, and their struggles.  We know where they live and how they live.  It’s an attitude that I have worked hard to instill in my daughters. 

 We cannot ignore the reality of both inter connectedness and interdependence in the world today. Sitting in your home or in your car as you read this I want you to know one thing-you have a profound effect on other nations as well as the world. When people with strong purchasing power-I am talking to you dear reader-increase demands for cheap textiles, electronics, or tropical hardwood floors somewhere across the planet the lives of farmers, miners, service providers are affected. World-mindedness helps me think of those service providers and farmers as my neighbors. It starts as global awareness then it grows…..

How do you know if you are world-minded?

World-Minded people…..

Have a map of the world in their heads…literally.  They do not need everyone to be an all-star jeopardy winner but they are drawn to people who have a foundation for discussions about other nations and regions, countries and cultures.  I have maps all over the place… in my office, my home. They help me plan my next adventure and explore the world more easily. They help me see that local issues have global connections.

Connect learning with doing.  Having a map is the first step, understanding a map and the history behind it is critical.  Border skirmishes, wars, migration patterns, colonization, and natural resources, disasters- all these things are what help to make maps living and breathing.  World-minded people understand the role that history plays in finding solutions to modern day problems.  Opportunities for civic engagement is increased as they see more opportunities to participate.

Help people identify what they do not know. They love to ask questions. They understand that there are no easy, pretty answers to life’s most pressing social issues. They help others in their personal circle connect the dots between their cheap goods and modern day slavery. They share knowledge. They are advocates and ambassadors.  They are passionate about their personal quest for answers. They care how others perceive their home nation.

Encourage world- minded thinking in others. They use “us” to mean people beyond their own race, ethnicity, neighborhood or nation. They see beyond  xenophobia, they understand the power of diversity and listening to others. They see the importance of creating  space for new voices, new leadership.  They understand that not everything different is bad, boring, bizarre, dangerous or evil. All nations and languages are equally respected.

 How will power be wielded in the future? Who will run our governments, craft policy, teach our children, and start new businesses?

I am not sure. I just have one wish.  That these folks working hard in their  local communities will be smart and creative is a given, but  I pray that they will understand the importance of “world-mindedness” and the importance it plays in making informed decisions in this globally connected world.

A people must have dignity and identity.
Andrew Goodman 

 This weekend I read some really frightening statistics: 

While they constitute approximately 5 per cent of the world’s population, indigenous peoples makeup 15 per cent of the world’s poor 

• They also make up about one-third of the world’s 900 million extremely poor rural people
• In Canada about 70 per cent of First Nations students on reservations will never complete high school.
• In the US Native Americans and Alaska Natives have higher death rates than other Americans from tuberculosis (600 per cent higher), alcoholism (510 per cent higher), motor vehicle crashes (229 per cent higher), diabetes (189 per cent higher),  and suicide (62 percent higher).

 Umm..yeah, for reals.  

Those numbers just kick you in the teeth. I know you guys are way smarter than I- So me, being me I  started to do a little reading and I wanted to share with you all what I learned. 

It is estimated that there are more than 370 million indigenous people spread across 90 countriesworldwide. The United Nations has pages and pages of documentation to help nations define and understand the term “indigenous”. The criteria can include people who have historical continuity with pre-colonial or pre-settler societies or a non-dominant group with a strong link to territories and surrounding natural resources. 

 Practicing unique traditions, these “first” people retain social, cultural, economic and political characteristics that are distinct from those of the dominant societies in which they live. Spread across the world from the Arctic to the South Pacific, they are the descendants  of those who inhabited a country or a geographical region at the time when people of different cultures or ethnic origins arrived 

 Jump on boat, cross seas, see new land. Dominate. 

 We all know how the new arrivals later became dominant – that’s right through conquest, occupation, settlement or other horrifying means. That occupation has led to Native people losing their belief systems, cultures, languages and ways of life. 

How would you feel if you lost your land, your language and your identity? 

Even in developed countries, indigenous peoples consistently lag behind the non-indigenous population in terms of most indicators of well-being. They live shorter lives, have poorer health care and education and endure higher unemployment rates.Who thinks its ok for 70% of native students in Canada on the reservation not to graduate? 

Land 

 Indigenous peoples are custodians of some of the most biologically diverse, amazing beautiful and resource rich   territories in the world. Indigenous peoples’ traditional livelihoods are threatened not only by extractive industries like mining or huge development projects like dams , but also by efforts that are aimed at preserving and celebrating indigenous peoples’ cultures and the environment. In some cases, indigenous peoples have been forced off their lands for the establishment of natural parks.  They are also responsible for a great deal of the world’s linguistic and cultural diversity, and their traditional knowledge has been and continues to be an invaluable resource that benefits all of mankind. 

Language 

Language is an important component of one’s identity. Now imagine that you canot learn the language spoken by your great- great grandfather because  no one is around to speak it or teach it 

 Here is  an intersting gem:  About 97 per cent of the world’s population speaks 4 per cent of its languages, while only 3 per cent speaks 96 per cent of them. A great majority of these languages are spoken by indigenous peoples, and many (if not most) of them are in danger of becoming extinct. 

Language is vital.  It is fundamental to understanding values, beliefs, ideology and other  of culture. It enables people to communicate. It  determines participation, access to knowledge, and leadership. 

Identity 

Traditional knowledge tends to be collectively owned.  That tends to make people jumpy?  Shared knowledge? What is this craziness you speak of? 

 This knowledge is deeply  embedded in community practices, institutions, relationships and rituals.  Deeply embedded—down to the DNA.  Transmission of this knowledge is critical. Traditional knowledge is  directly linked to the concept of self-determination in the sense that native peoples have the right to manage their own heritage, knowledge, territories and resources. They have the right to maintain, control, protect and develop their cultural heritage, traditional knowledge and traditional cultural expressions.

THEY DO. No one else. 

That sounds like POWER to me. 

Both tears and sweat are salty, but they render a different result. Tears will get you sympathy; sweat will get you change.
Jesse Jackson

Later this week I will leave a fantastic job with a wonderful organization, Habitat for Humanity International. Running the global volunteer programs for a major nonprofit is a big job and for the last six years it’s been a privilege to serve both the volunteers and the families we partnered with.

 I learned so much, but one of my favorite lessons is the power and importance of sweat.

 Something powerful happens when people work on a physical activity together. At Habitat the medium for collaboration was the building and renovation of safe shelter. Relationships and trust were built as walls were raised. The process of creating the shelter was more profound than the product. Its very true and if you have ever labored next to and with someone, then you know its true.  

  I have seen it every day in the work that I have done for six years. Mind and muscle together is a powerful combination and one that is amazingly appealing and effective in finding solutions to the world’s problems. Sweat helps to bring about reconciliation, renewal and revitalization. Its transformative, it WILL get you change. Working and sweating together allows all concern to walk humbly together as they seek out answers to complex questions. It encourages everyone to give what they can-contribution of labor and time of resources and ability.

 I am a firm believer that transformation comes from both education and action. Corporations are changed when their leadership and employees work side by side with local residents.  Families are transformed when parents and grandparents garden, paint or cook with children. Communities are transformed when money is raised for band uniforms, or community watch groups are created.  A new vision for one’s life can be created through action, through sweat.  What before could not be, now miraculously is done.

 Sweat shows that we walked the walked, and through our walking we invite others to walk with us. So I say to you in the words of Zora Neale  Hurston- Sweat, sweat, sweat! Work and sweat, cry and sweat, pray and sweat!