The Much-Neglected “Inner Game” of Starting a Nonprofit or Social Venture

These times call for acts of optimistic courage in our voluntary sector (including nonprofit organizations) and in society as a whole. All of us are called to a heroic journey — discovering within ourselves, and in the causes we serve, more than we ever believed was there.

(Of course, only some will heed the call, but the world will be better for their having answered.)

We often spend so much time coping with problems along our path that we only have a dim or even inaccurate view of what’s really important to us.

– Peter Senge

And it’s easy to get off track — to allow the little “nos” we hear every day to block out the louder “yeses” of our lives.

Whether you’re starting a nonprofit organization, launching a social enterprise, moving into civic leadership, or taking an existing social venture to new heights, there’s a crucial “inner game” at work. And here’s a different playbook than you’ve ever seen before …

Your Purpose and Your Presence

• What Kind of World Do You Want?
  Are you looking for “safe” … or something else?
• What About the Next Chapter in Your Life?
  Could it be the most meaningful yet? (The people who are really making a difference aren’t buying into the “woe are we” noise that surrounds us these days … they’re on a completely different path.)
• Your Contribution Comes from Who You Are
  Letting your distinctive self shine through will make your work more significant — to you and to others.
• How Do We Break Through the Noise?
  How to turn off the default tapes — about needs, problems, lacks, limits — that can sabotage your ability to inspire people, attract support, and keep moving forward on your big dreams for the world.
• Where Do We Get the Nerve?
  Here’s why we have every right to believe in ourselves and in our ability to create the world we want, in whatever sector of society we might choose — nonprofit organizations, social enterprises, civic leadership.
• Meaning and Immortality
  At the age where “mortality” has started to mean something? Please read this.

What is Your Work About?

• How High Do You Aspire?
  You can set your sights higher than just fixing what’s wrong. (A lot higher.)
• Talk About What You Want
  Many folks launch social initiatives (including nonprofit organizations) in order to “solve a problem” they see in their community (or the larger world). But here’s another way to think about what you’re going to do.
• What is Your Work Really About?
  A mini case study to spark your imagination about how you might think of your work in a larger way.
• Beyond Strategic Planning
  Martin Luther King, Jr., did not say, “I have a strategic plan.” Instead, he shouted, “I have a dream!” Is your planning designed to generate bold dreams and the energy to bring them to life?

How to Attract People and Money
(In a Big Way)

• Claim Your Role as Agent of Change
  As you launch a new project or ramp up something you’re already doing, there’s going to be money involved. Many folks dread this part, but I’m going to make it a lot easier for you. (Hint: This is a much larger and more exciting role than most people think.)
• Do You Start with “Feasibility” … or With Who You Are and What You Want?
  “If we’d begun by analyzing the ‘feasibility’ of founding a new school, we probably would’ve stopped dead in our tracks.”
• See Yourself as a Beacon of Hope
  Today, if you and your cause can shine brightly when so many see darkness, you will attract people. And what they’ll do may surprise you.
• He Backed Off and Was Astonished at What Happened
  Ever struggle to persuade someone to do what you wanted them to do? Tricky, yes? Here’s what can happen when you back off and create some space.
• What’s the Key to Launching a Project That’s Bigger Than You Ever Thought Possible?
  A rare chance to go “behind the scenes” with one of the leaders of the largest private land conservation project in U.S. history. (There’s great learning here for advancing any cause, at any scale.)

How Can You Have Success
Just Fall in Your Lap?

It might seem like some of the folks you met in these pieces had huge opportunities fall in their laps. Are some people just “lucky”?

Well, maybe, but I know that all these folks did things. They didn’t just sit there. They learned how to set up the conditions for success, then set about doing so, systematically and intentionally. What they didn’t plan for — or even plan on — was the magnitude of what ended up happening.

But Isn’t It Time to Draw Back?

These days a lot of people who have all the right resources for what they want to do are opting to draw back and wait it out.

But what you’re about is too important to withdraw now. So reading about, thinking, talking, and being with people who are staying enlivened is more important than ever.

We want to urge you to stay connected with every source of encouragement you can find — so you can continue to sustain your own energy and be a beacon to the people around you.