How to Stop Overcommitting

Would you like to STOP:

-Rushing to/from meetings?

-Missing workouts?

-Getting reports in at the last minute?

-Burning yourself out?

Then you need to stop overcommitting.

Admit it.  There is a certain “jazz” you get from being constantly busy.  It can be intoxicating to serve the tyranny of the urgent.  In his book First Things First, Dr. Stephen Covey identifies this addiction to urgency as the first thing you need to kick if you really want more control of your time.  It makes you look busy, but maybe not very productive.  And urgency is certainly the enemy of quality work.

Here are three more tips to STOP doing the things above and to actually produce even higher QUALITY work.

1.  You actually have some control in your life.  Identify what you can say no to – and start saying no.  Kick the ALWAYS SAYING YES habit.

2.  Where you cannot say no - negotiate longer deadlines.  Let’s face it, not everything needs to be done yesterday.

3.  Block significant chunks of time on your calendar to get “work” done – no meetings; and stick to it.

There is no easy answer to getting today’s work life of constant change, tons of emails, and endless meetings under control.  But these suggestions will help.  You will be happier and make even more of a Mission Impact when you implement them.

For more ideas on how you can lead breakthroughs in your organization, follow this blog and check out my web site at www.SheehanNonprofitConsulting.com   You will find free resources you can download, including a Breakthrough Strategy Workbook that you can download at no cost.  You can also check out my book, Mission Impact:  Breakthrough Strategies for Nonprofits, and buy it if you are interested.  And you can follow Sheehan Nonprofit Consulting on Facebook.

The Value of Nurturing Stakeholders

You know it’s something you should spend more time on, but it gets put on the backburner.  This blog is dedicated to encouraging you to take “nurturing stakeholders” from your “C” list and moving it up to your “A” list.

We all know how important it is to have strong relationships with our stakeholders, whether they are donors, board members, volunteers, alumni, people who use our services, staff, community leaders, etc.  Nonprofits do not have “shareholders” as owners.  But the closest thing we have to “owners” are our stakeholders – and we owe it to them to keep them updated on what we are doing and to regularly get their input on our activities.

And this should not just happen every three – five years when you are doing your new strategic plan.  It should be an ongoing, regular process.  You don’t have to wait until it is strategy time to do a survey, hold a town hall, run some focus groups, or have some individual meetings to share what is going on and ask for input.

I know one CEO who makes it a point every week to have at least one lunch/coffee with one or more stakeholders.  Taking this personal time means the world to people.

Who are the most neglected stakeholders?  I would be interested in your nominations, but I find that it is often past board members.  They finish their term and we don’t know what to do with them.  How about asking them out to coffee every now and then?  If you have a national board and that is unrealistic, then maybe you do a special email message just to past board members two or three times a year – and not just when you are ready to ask them for money.

Our stakeholders are our core.  We could not exist without them.  And some day you are going to need them more than you realize.  I say it’s time to put stakeholders on the “A” list.

For more ideas on how you can lead breakthroughs in your organization, follow this blog and check out my web site at www.SheehanNonprofitConsulting.com   You will find free resources you can download, including a Breakthrough Strategy Workbook that you can download at no cost.  You can also check out my book, Mission Impact:  Breakthrough Strategies for Nonprofits, and buy it if you are interested.  And you can follow Sheehan Nonprofit Consulting on Facebook.

The Secret of Alchemy

The last days of summer are speeding by, but there is still time to pick up a book for that final summer read at the beach or pool this weekend.  And I recommend The Alchemist by Paul Coelho.

The Alchemist is an oldie, but goodie that I finally got around to reading recently.  It is a fable of a young man who goes in search of his destiny.  The Alchemist he meets in the story does not teach him how to turn lead into gold, but instead how to turn dreams into reality – which is golden in its own way.

A few of my favorite passages:

*At one point the young man was robbed of everything he had and was totally penniless.  “As he mused about these things, he realized that he had to choose between thinking of himself as the poor victim of a thief and as an adventurer in quest of his treasure.  ‘I’m an adventurer, looking for treasure,’ he said to himself.”  We are all adventurers on our various quests.  The young man chose to focus on the vision of his future quest rather than his temporary misfortune.

*As the young man’s pursuit of his quest continued, he wondered if its achievement was impossible.  The Alchemist counseled him that “There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure.”  And he encouraged the young man to focus on the passion for his vision, his Personal Legend.

*Later, the young man realized that there was a significant chance that he could die in the pursuit of his vision.  Again, the Alchemist counseled him “Then you’ll die in the midst of trying to realize your Personal Legend.  That’s a lot better than dying like millions of other people, who never even knew what their Personal Legends were.”  This reminds me of that great Helen Keller quote: “Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.”

Did the young man achieve his vision?  I can’t reveal that, but I can tell you that he learned many lessons that you will enjoy reading about.  If we passionately believe in our visions with all of our heart, magical things can happen.  Enjoy The Alchemist! 

For more ideas on how you can lead breakthroughs in your organization, follow this blog and check out my web site at www.SheehanNonprofitConsulting.com   You will find free resources you can download, including a Breakthrough Strategy Workbook that you can download at no cost.  You can also check out my book, Mission Impact:  Breakthrough Strategies for Nonprofits, and buy it if you are interested.  And you can follow Sheehan Nonprofit Consulting on Facebook.

Foster HQCs to Enhance Mission Impact

HQCs = High Quality Connections

If you want a workplace in which:

*Individuals are thriving

*Teams are more effective

*The overall organization performs at a higher level

Then you should consider encouraging more High Quality Connections among those you work with.  Ground-breaking research by University of Michigan professor Dr. Jane Dutton* and others demonstrates that HQCs in the workplace have these positive effects.

How can you create HQCs in your workplace?*

*Convey Presence.  Fully engage with a person when you are talking with them.  I know one executive who has started closing his laptop when people stop in to meet with him to help him be less distracted and send a message that he is fully present in the moment.

*Be Genuine.  Show people that you care about them in a genuine, heart-felt way.  You can’t fake sincerity, so seek to bring your authentic self to every work interaction.

*Communicate Affirmation.  Acknowledge the positive contributions of team members when you have the opportunity.  Expressing appreciation costs nothing yet is worth gold for people.

*Listen Effectively.  Be responsive.  Close out distractions.  Practice Active Listening and ask people if they feel as if you have heard them.

*Supportive Communication.  How we say things matters.  We can express our views without being defensive and use a supportive tone.  Communicate clearly without baggage.

People want a workplace that is vibrant and supportive, not corrosive!  When we utilize more of these HQC producing behaviors, we are building a more resilient workplace and making more of a Mission Impact.

*Dutton, J.E. “Fostering high quality connections through respectful engagement.”  Stanford Social Innovation Review, Winter, 54-57, 2003

For more ideas on how you can lead breakthroughs in your organization, follow this blog and check out my web site at www.SheehanNonprofitConsulting.com   You will find free resources you can download, including a Breakthrough Strategy Workbook that you can download at no cost.  You can also check out my book, Mission Impact:  Breakthrough Strategies for Nonprofits, and buy it if you are interested.  And you can follow Sheehan Nonprofit Consulting on Facebook.

Faith & Philanthropy

What common ground can a rabbi, an imam, a priest, and a minister find about philanthropy especially when the conversation is moderated by Washington Post super journalist, Sally Quinn? As it turns out – a lot.

The question posed to this 2015 Bridge Conference panel of clergy representing three of the world's great religions, Islam, Judaism and Christianity, was "What impact does faith have on philanthropy?"

L to R, John Wm Thomas, Msgr John Enzler, Iman Yahya Hendi,
 Rev Dr Dennis Perry, Rabbi Danny Zemel, Sally Quinn, 

The tone of the panel discussion boiled down to three words or phrases:

*Common ancestry

*Grace

*Giving as a sacred act

The Power of a Common Heritage: Rabbi Danny Zemel, Temple Micah, pointed out that Judaism, the root faith for both Islam and Christianity, encouraged giving more than 4,000 years ago.  In fact, "tzedakah" refers to teaching Jews the obligation, not choice but obligation, to give. Imam Yahya Hendi, Chaplain at Georgetown University, shared Islamic tradition that uses similar words, "zakat" and "sadaqa" that traces back to a powerful and timeless directive: "And remember we took a covenant from the Children of Israel (to this effect): Worship none but Allah; treat with kindness your parents and kindred, and orphans and those in need; speak fair to the people; be steadfast in prayer; and practice regular charity.”

Grace: "Grace" for Jews and Christians is that unmerited, unearned favor that gives us the ability to do good works, including philanthropy. Muslims also hold that our power to do good works is because of God's grace. What better example is there to describe grace than the panelists’ conversation around the question of whether they would support each other's causes. It was here that Mgsr. John Enzler, CEO of Catholic Charities, pointed out the generosity all faiths, Catholics, Muslims and Jews in providing financial and spiritual support to the National Cathedral after it suffered a devastating earthquake in August 2011.

The Sacred Act of Giving: The Rev. Dr. Dennis Perry, a United Methodist clergyman, reminded all that when we do those things that exemplify the best of life, the highest values of life, we call them "sacred" or "holy". Those are labels that elevate an action to the level of the divine. Philanthropy, giving, is just such an "elevator,” for when we give, when we favor others with love, we are emulating the best, the highest, the holy.

As we seek to raise philanthropic funds for our various nonprofits, it is helpful to keep in mind the various motivations that people have to give which may include (or not) philanthropy as an extension of their faith.

Our Guest Blogger today is John Wm. Thomas, my co-convener of this session at The Bridge Conference; retired as COO of Children's Hospital Foundation in 2008 and now consults for non-profits nationally and regionally.

For more ideas on how you can lead breakthroughs in your organization, follow this blog and check out my web site at www.SheehanNonprofitConsulting.com   You will find free resources you can download, including a Breakthrough Strategy Workbook that you can download at no cost.  You can also check out my book, Mission Impact:  Breakthrough Strategies for Nonprofits, and buy it if you are interested.  And you can follow Sheehan Nonprofit Consulting on Facebook.