Monthly Archives: December 2008

Being True to Our Mission

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Interesting article in the Wall Street Journal the other day -  http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122963299671419401.html

This article jumped off the page for me. I raised the issue in a blog post awhile back in May of 2008 - 

 see…. http://oculusdirect.com/blog/2008/05/

To see this article raise this issue means a great deal to me and should to you as well. The nonprofit sector can no longer be complacent – especially, regarding how we are measured not just by ourselves but our donors and those pesky rating agencies like Charity Navigator.

We need to take a stand and develop a new and innovative method for measuring our effectiveness – not by dollars raised or a convoluted SOP 98-2 process that can be jury-rigged to fit the outcome we want. Why are we all sitting by and letting this happen? It’s kind of like the lazzi-fare attitude that Wall Street faced for so many years. Everyone seemed to be in on the little secret that there was a house of cards being built but no one really cared as long as everyone continued to prosper from the deceit.

Is the nonprofit sector much different? Really? We are perfectly content producing what we feel are legitimate numbers and percentages and do our best to “comply” with the rating systems and perhaps acquire the BBB seal of approval. But if you are like many in the industry there is something gnawing at you - yet you don’t know what to do because there is an ocean of movement going in one direction.

Well, one by one, we can take a new direction that someday might become the norm for measuring nonprofits. The paradigm shift that needs to happen involves completely rethinking how we measure success.

Lets begin taking a hard look at this and figure out a way, method, that will logically and effectively measure if we have accomplished our mission and goals or not. Whether its serving people in soup kitchen, or drilling bore holes, or funding a cure for diabetes,  or educating people, or building an art museum, or filling some other social or cultural need, we need to quantify what we have done in real terms not simply financial terms.

I don’t have the answer – perhaps you do – but the best thing we can do is to begin the conversation – NOW before its too late…. and we are another casualty like the investment community.

Let’s Re-calibrate Our Priorities

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I am sure you are just as appalled as I am with regard to the Madoff scandal, Ponzi Scheme, swindle or whatever you want to call it. But no matter what you call it there seems to be change in the wind – not just on Wall Street but also in how we live our lives and what we should consider important.

How can we see so much wealth, or presumed wealth, evaporate into thin air. Where did it go? Were we in a bad dream for the last several years and now wake up to face a different reality like NEO in The Matrix?

I am truly saddened to know that several charities have literally had to close their doors because of this one man – Madoff. Yet I keep thinking there is a bigger lesson to learn from all of this. None of us know if it will get worse or get better and perhaps we may even look back upon the last several years with abhorrence as to how we lived our life and the misguided values we embraced. Regardless of our perspective everything is different now.

See Chronicle article http://philanthropy.com/news/updates/index.php?id=6582 

Bottom-line is we were collectively mesmerized by money, success, the fast-lane and reaching new and greater financial heights and acquiring more and more things.

I hope that one of the outcomes of this Madoff debacle, along with the stock market cratering, the recession, bankruptcies and so forth – will be a resurgence of a renewed consideration for the “person” and not just “things”. We need to circle back and embrace the human condition and not materialism. This is simplistic I realize and possibly idealistic – but doesn’t all of this nonsense make you want to go home and spend some time with your family and hug your wife and kids and appreciate what you have? Doesn’t it now seem like material things are simply just that and consequently have no intrinsic value. There is nothing endearing about a fancy car or a fancy house – yes, its impressive but the aura of it doesn’t live forever. What lives forever is family and integrity and honesty and character and honor and memories.

Anyway, to the point I really want to make – I think this is the change we have been looking for in the nonprofit world. We have been chasing money for far too long. This is an unavoidable reality but we need to be chasing passion more than just money. The outcome of the last twelve months will be a re-calibration of priorities which will direct people to a renewed sense of community and a sense of duty with regard to those around them and for the greater good. People will realize that materialism was a sham and that there is much more to life. They will find a new passion in helping and doing things for others, their families, and the world. Nonporfits will be the beneficiary of this new perspective of the world.

A close friend of mine is a shining example of someone that is professionally very successful yet never turns down a chance to help people and support others way beyond the call of duty. He has a tremendous passion for life and those around him, especially his family. He is in the process of training (finding time in his busy schedule must be daunting) for a 24 hour 400 mile bike ride to raise money to find a cure for Lupus (his daughter suffers from the disease). http://lifewithoutlupus.org

This is the future of fundraising. Individuals making personal commitments because they believe in a cause and have the passion to help make a difference. Its going to be people like Chris Paradysz that help people in new and extraordinary ways.