Dear John,
Whenever I talk to nonprofit and foundation leaders these days, I am in awe of the ingenuity and compassion they have demonstrated as they seek to rally their teams, donors, board members, grantees, and others to do great work in these unsettled times.
But I am also struck by how challenging it is to stay motivated after grueling months and months of challenges. So many leaders are hungry for a deeper understanding of how to keep up their courage and optimism as it grows clearer every day that weâre in for another cycle of crises in 2022.
To help you get ready for whatâs next, I urge you to join me next week for a free conversation with Nancy Koehn, a Harvard Business School professor who studies how social-change leaders and others make the critical decisions they need to lead. Sheâll help you better understand how to maintain trust at a time when skepticism abounds and offer you tools and ideas that will guide you through this cycle of extended instability.
Leading Nancy in conversation will be Phil Buchanan, head of the Center for Effective Philanthropy, so that together they can focus precisely on the challenges facing todayâs nonprofit and foundation leaders. As they talk, Iâll take your questions to ensure that this session will be an interactive learning experience. I also hope our discussion will offer you a moment to reflect and draw support from peers around the country.
When Nancy, Phil, and I met to start planning this session, I was struck by how many good ideas she packed into every sentence.
But I was also inspired by a point Nancy made: At this moment when so many people are disappointed by leaders on the national and world stage, nonprofit executives face a rare opportunity to make an outsize difference. They can motivate their staffs in ways that have a ripple effect well beyond their own organizations.
Stay strong.
Stacy Palmer
Editor Chronicle of Philanthropy 1255 Twenty-Third St. NW Washington, DC 20037 Unsubscribe | Privacy Policy 