In Quadrant 3 Leadership, we teach leaders the three main areas of work needed to grow into being a Focused Leader: hardwiring, identity, and goals. Knowing your hardwiring gives you insight into what comes quickly to you and what either takes time or causes stress....
What do you do when you have a great sales or fundraising conversation with a person but then they stop responding? They’ve already made the decision to buy or give – or at least they say they have. But they haven’t yet given or purchased. This is so...
In our most recent nonprofit leadership study, one of the things we looked at was how four different leadership styles affected a nonprofit’s “culture of philanthropy.” The four styles were: servant leadership, transformational leadership,...
A new study by the Hartsook Centre for Sustainable Philanthropy suggests nonprofits are completely unprepared to face looming leadership changes. The report seems to show that most nonprofits aren’t even trying. Researchers estimate that over 67 percent of current...
How do you behave as a leader? Do you know what your preferred management style is and how it contributes to your success? I’m pleased to announce that it’s time for the 2nd Nonprofit Sector Leadership survey! This year The Concord Leadership Group is...
I just finished a brand new book called Exactly What to Say by Phil Jones. He shares a couple dozen phrases to use in sticky situations. Some of the most helpful are in the context of following up. Think about a person you’ve asked to do something. Maybe...
Replacing an executive director is very hard to do. It can be traumatizing to the board, the staff and the community being served. But sometimes it needs to be done and doing it right is critical to the overall health of your organization. I write this post from the...
Last week at the National Speakers Association conference, I was able to hear Kindra Hall teach on storytelling. As a producer of the Nonprofit Storytelling Conference, I have heard a lot of people speak on storytelling. Kindra is one of the best. Normal, Explosion,...
We leaders are busy people facing multiple demands. Although we know the saying, “leaders are readers,” too often, reading dropped from our schedules. It feels like a luxury we can’t afford. Especially reading fiction. But fiction may be just what...
Years ago, I was the only male on a fundraising team. In a staff meeting, we were talking about hiring a new position. The staff kept calling the prospective person “her.” So, being an advocate of gender equality, I playfully inserted, “Or...
