Keeping My Fire-Lessons Learned

Last week I wrote about my current struggle in maintaining the passion that brought me to the sector. The comments and feedback have been wonderful and really pushed me to reflect more on what I do and why I do it.  Here are a few things I now know to keep in mind:

Be deliberate about keeping and adding fire to your work:

I think my biggest mistake is assuming that my passion does not need TLC.  But it’s easy to get caught up in your professional work and get out of touch with your original inspiration for pursuing a career in social change. So take time to nurse your soul and get in touch with YOUR mission.  Who or what inspires you?  Why did you get into this work in the first place?

One thing that I enjoyed doing at a former job was actually talking to co-workers about our cause and our role in it.  We shared personal experiences, opportunities to connect with others, and interesting information about our issue.  In fact, talking to people—whether it is at work, at a conference, or even at home—about what’s moves and inspires them, then making connections really helps you see the importance of what you do.

Elizabeth Clawson also made a great recommendation in the comments of my last post:  “Maybe one solution is to work where we can, lifeless or not, and keep up with our passions on the side. Contracting, volunteering, blogging…there are lots of opportunities for that kind of balance.”

Rewrite your job description:

In my last post a commenter who also works in development described their work in a very powerful way:

“I don’t raise money and resources: I help inspire executives to get involved; I help provide the funds that keep the organization going; we don’t do speaking engagements, we are building passion and support for our cause and the cause of our clients; I don’t write grants–I’m inviting foundations to take a hard look at an issue area and make a significant and impactful investment in our mission.”

Sometimes a fresh perspective is all it takes to keep you energized and committed to your work.  What are the larger implications of your work for the cause you are committed to and your organization’s mission?

Focus on the cause not just the sector:

Colleen Dilenschneider wrote a brilliant piece about how Gen Y knows that social change is not limited to one sector. I couldn’t agree with that more.  In fact spending time in the nonprofit sector has shown me just how connected the sectors are, especially in a field like education.  Each sector may engage an issue differently but the trick is to focus on the change you want to see regarding your cause, what you believe is the best method of getting there, and how you want to be involved in that process.

Move around if you need to:

I got into development after spending a lot of time doing direct service work. I needed to look at my cause from a different angle while tapping into my desire to be more behind the scenes doing work with a larger impact.  That said I am still amazed at how many ways there are to engage in social change work.  Whatever skills, experience, time, and interest you have there are so many ways to get involved.  This diversity is exciting and compelling—there is always a way to make a difference.

What do you do to keep your passion?

Keeping My Fire

Elisa Ortiz recently wrote a great piece about her journey into the nonprofit sector.  It got me thinking about mine and the challenges I am facing.  So for this Nonprofit Milleninal Bloggers Alliance post, I’m reflecting on why I’m in the sector.

I didn’t get into the nonprofit sector because of a desire to feel warm inside.  In fact becoming a nonprofiteer was never a goal of mine.  I got involved in social justice work because I was angry.  I was angry at the blatant inequalities I saw every day on my way to my posh prep school in downtown Brooklyn from my family’s tiny apartment in the projects on the other side of the borough.   It was blessing, of course, to be given such an opportunity but it didn’t come without challenges, primarily not really feeling like I fit in anywhere.

College was an escape from the tension and an opportunity for reflection.   I searched endlessly for stories that could articulate my feelings of confusion, frustration, and outrage.  I found them and discovered ways to put my passion into action—volunteerism, research, and connecting with people from various backgrounds to refine my work.  Education was my saving grace and I work to increase access to those who need it most.

Yet oddly enough the more I work in the nonprofit sector, the more removed from my original passion I feel.  The language I use is no longer for the sole purpose of exploring my experiences.  Now, I’m describing someone else’s experiences for someone else’s use.   It almost feels other worldly.  Suddenly I’m a professional which means conversations on branding, development, and other stuff that gets very old very fast.  I’m writing about poorblackinnercityyouth using language that is very distant as if I wasn’t one of those poorblackinnercityyouth just a few years ago.

Where is the fire that brought me to the sector?  Why can’t I integrate it into my work instead of it being a separate private aspect of my identity that simply fuels it?  I came across this powerful article a few days ago which states that as more nonprofits reach out to their poor constituents to see what the issues are, they neglect the employees who were poor and may have their own stories to tell.  Have we considered how these conversations might renew commitment, shed light on different perspectives and ideas?

Or am I here to attend conferences on branding and the like?

20Under40: A Week Long Conversation about Leadership Changes in the Arts

Some time ago I posted about the call for submissions for the 20Under40 anthology which will feature 20 essays by emerging leaders in the arts about the future of arts and arts education.  To follow up with this amazing project they are hosting a week-long discussion for emerging leaders in the arts to talk about generational changes in leadership and the value young people bring to the arts field:

Emerging Leaders Blog Salon
Join the Emerging Leaders Network of Americans for the Arts and the 20UNDER40 anthology for the Emerging Leaders Salon on ARTSblog the week of October 19-23. Nearly 20 diverse arts professionals from across the country will discuss the impending generational shift in arts leadership and the value of emerging leaders to the field. Follow these posts and continue the conversation through your ideas, comments, and personal stories.

This is run by The Americans for the Arts Emerging Leader Network which “works to identify and cultivate the next generation of arts leaders in America.”  They have chapters across the country so I encourage you to look into them. Even if you are not in the arts, joining one of these groups as a supporter goes a long way as well.  I am member of ELNYA-Emerging Leaders of New York Arts and always blown away by the events, conversations, and opportunities presented to cultivate leadership!

Introducing the Nonprofit Millenial Bloggers Alliance

In the almost two years that I have been blogging I have learned so much about the nonprofit sector and the challenges that young employees face.  This has motivated me to act and to connect with those who share my passion for creating a culture in the sector that values and actively supports young employees.

However, I always wondered how we could include more voices from the next generation in the conversation about the future of the nonprofit sector.  Then I came across this article in problogger about forming a blogging alliance.  While he talks about it being a secret mainly to benefit bloggers, I saw an opportunity to gather a group of young nonprofit bloggers who can help each other reach wider audiences and collectively bringing important issues about the nonprofit sector to the forefront  by actively engaging and sharing each other’s work.

So I am happy to announce that today is the official launch of the Nonprofit Millenial Bloggers Alliance!  This alliance (which is growing!), currently includes the following spectacular bloggers:

• Rosetta Thurman, Perspectives from the Pipeline, @rosettathurman
• James Elbaor, From the Desk of James Elbaor, @jameselbaor
• Elisa M. Ortiz, Onward and Upward, @emortiz
• Elizabeth Clawson, Nonprofit Periscope, @eclawson
• Trina Isakson, Trina’s Nonprofit Blog, @telleni
• Kathrin Ivanovic, The Diversity Projekt, @kathrinoutloud
• Colleen Dilenschneider, Know Your Bone, @cdilly
• Tera Wozniak Qualls, Social Citizen, @terawozqualls
• Tracey Webb, Black Gives Back, @blkgivesback
• Kevin Gilnack, (Nonprofits + Politics)2.0, @kgilnack

Make sure you visit each of their blogs for their take on the alliance.

While each of us looks at the nonprofit sector from a different perspective we share the view that millenials offer something valuable to nonprofits.  You can expect to see guest posts, monthly themes, and blogging challenges.

And this isn’t about listening to millenials simply because folks think we know what’s new and snazzy and we hope the conversation extends beyond our oft cited love of technology.  It’s about the realistic necessity of preparing the next generation to grapple with the pressing issues that have and will continue to shape the way we do business.  It’s about harnessing skills and ideas to move social change forward.  It’s about celebrating the new wave of dedication to public service and capturing it to invigorate our organizations and our lives.

I’m excited to be part of this and look forward to sharing and engaging the bloggers and everyone who is interested in this issue.  The goal is to create an online hub of thought leaders in the nonprofit sector.  In keeping with the spirit of preparing for the future we are starting with millennial bloggers but stay tuned for more!

http://trinaisakson.wordpress.com/

Lessons on Social Change from Mayor Cory Booker of Newark, New Jersey

Last night I had the opportunity to attend a talk hosted by Dean Ellen Schall of NYU Wagner and Newark Mayor Corey Booker about the challenges—both cultural and systemic—in bringing about reform.  While he was speaking primarily about government, his words are of great use to organizations and individuals working for  social change.

Organizations:

• Coordinate the systems: Mayor Booker used a great example to point out how the real challenge is in making sure whatever systems are in place are on the same page: gather a group of people, ask them close their eyes and point north.  When they open their eyes, they’ll see that everyone is pointing in a different direction. Many of us have good intentions and good ideas but we don’t communicate or work together to make sure we reach our common goals.

• Use philanthropy wisely: He noted how often times the public sector will create and lead program while philanthropists will fund it.  Gathering the two together allows us to move from “islands of excellence to hemispheres of hope”; in other words, break out of the tendency to work in little corners on small issues when there are bigger issues to address.  However, when leading a new initiative, gathering money is easy, but becoming sustainable without it is tough.  Your plan should always include a way to move beyond donations.

• Create a powerful system of accountability: One thing that struck me about Mayor Booker was his dedication to research.  He needed to have all of the information before making a move—hence his unorthodox commitment to prisoner re-entry since he realized that that was the city’s biggest problem, which is a much harder issue to sell. Yet change only begins with research.  After doing research to know what the challenges are, be sure to set standards, create a method of meeting those standards, and establish consequences for failing to meet those standards.  The research and the consequences are where people struggle, yet they are most critical as they show you where you need to go and what to change.

Individuals:

• Make it personal: Dean Schall was taken aback by how personal Mayor Booker made his work.  He spoke as though he was personally responsible for every single person in the city.  That’s because he feels as if he is.  He challenged us to go beyond finding who is to blame and start asking ourselves, “what can I do to make this situation better?”

• Forget positions and find your purpose: When someone asked him about what his life will be like in 30 years, he joked about marriage but noted that often people rattle off job titles and responsibilities, not purpose and values.  His goal is to live a life that is true to his commitment to equality and justice.  Who you are goes beyond what job you have.  Jobs come and go but what you stand for will always remain.

Both:

• Empower people to take care of themselves: One of my favorite stories that Paul Light told some time ago is of a volunteer at a soup kitchen who looked forward to seeing a guy every week.  Paul Light was shocked by this—if you are seeing the same person every week, they aren’t getting the help they need.  It may feel endearing but it is actually tragic. We must work for the day where these kinds of services are no longer needed.  Mayor Booker has a similar approach with his Fatherhood Program—it’s about addressing root problems and gradually eradicating them.

While I have always respected Mayor Booker, listening to him last night left me inspired and reaffirmed.  No one says the public service is easy but at times the challenges can be overwhelming.  His input and success show that these obstacles can be overcome.