Welcome to 501 Focused. As the name implies, this blog is focused on addressing the needs of nonprofits [501(c)(3)] and associations [501(c)(6)]. Over the next several months, we’ll cover strategic planning and many of the aspects of what makes that -- and the organizations who engage in it -- successful.
In the spirit of being “501 Focused,” this blog plans to highlight a nonprofit or association with each posting. See the “Focus On” section at the bottom of the post for our featured organizations.
To kick things off, I’d like to share some personal insight I recently had involving both work and family -- two aspects of our lives that often intersect, whether we want them to or not.
I just returned from a board meeting for an association of surgeons, where I facilitated a session to help them plan some projects for the next few years. Two days later I got a call telling me my mother had fallen and was at a local hospital. While it might seem strange to connect the two, I approached both events in a similar fashion.
Getting Focused
Planning takes focus, but so does the unexpected. Whether you’re an association or the child of an aging parent, focusing on the important issues gets you more quickly to your goals. Being distracted by the daily grind or minor inconveniences only drags you off course.
With the group of surgeons, having a day devoted to working through how best to proceed with new and continuing projects allowed them to brainstorm and concentrate on just those facets of their operation (pun intended). No extra stuff -- like who will they get to be on the board next year, or how will the conference brochure be designed -- got in the way of the bigger plans. Those things were addressed in a separate session on a different day. You can only get to the bigger plans if you focus on them, without being sidetracked in the process.
Likewise, dealing with an aging parent can get you lost in all the paperwork and minutiae. If you don’t have a clear focus on the overall goals for your family, you can be pulled in so many directions you don’t know what to do first. Picture the circus performer trying to keep all the plates spinning on sticks and you’ve got the idea.
So how do you Get Focused? Ah, that will be the subject of upcoming posts, where we’ll delve into areas like surveys, retreats and mission statements -- many of the pieces that help make organizations (and families, for that matter) more successful in the long run.
I hope you’ll continue to join me on this excursion and find the musings of this blog valuable. Please let me know if there are any specific topics you’d like covered, and feel free to add your comments to the postings. If you need more in-depth help with strategic planning, contact me directly or check out my Website for more information on what 501(c)onsulting can offer you in that area.
Here’s to keeping the discussion going all year long!
We’ll talk again soon. . .
(Picture courtesy of Flickr)
Focus On:
This time, the focus is on “Sweet Songs” - a benefit album for the Mothers’ Milk Bank of Austin. Launching in May, the album will include 13 songs inspired by babies, children and motherhood. Learn more about the project and the wonderful nonprofit it supports at http://www.austinsweetsongs.com/.
If you would like to see your favorite nonprofit or association highlighted in future posts, contact me.
In the spirit of being “501 Focused,” this blog plans to highlight a nonprofit or association with each posting. See the “Focus On” section at the bottom of the post for our featured organizations.
To kick things off, I’d like to share some personal insight I recently had involving both work and family -- two aspects of our lives that often intersect, whether we want them to or not.
I just returned from a board meeting for an association of surgeons, where I facilitated a session to help them plan some projects for the next few years. Two days later I got a call telling me my mother had fallen and was at a local hospital. While it might seem strange to connect the two, I approached both events in a similar fashion.
Getting Focused
Planning takes focus, but so does the unexpected. Whether you’re an association or the child of an aging parent, focusing on the important issues gets you more quickly to your goals. Being distracted by the daily grind or minor inconveniences only drags you off course.
With the group of surgeons, having a day devoted to working through how best to proceed with new and continuing projects allowed them to brainstorm and concentrate on just those facets of their operation (pun intended). No extra stuff -- like who will they get to be on the board next year, or how will the conference brochure be designed -- got in the way of the bigger plans. Those things were addressed in a separate session on a different day. You can only get to the bigger plans if you focus on them, without being sidetracked in the process.
Likewise, dealing with an aging parent can get you lost in all the paperwork and minutiae. If you don’t have a clear focus on the overall goals for your family, you can be pulled in so many directions you don’t know what to do first. Picture the circus performer trying to keep all the plates spinning on sticks and you’ve got the idea.
So how do you Get Focused? Ah, that will be the subject of upcoming posts, where we’ll delve into areas like surveys, retreats and mission statements -- many of the pieces that help make organizations (and families, for that matter) more successful in the long run.
I hope you’ll continue to join me on this excursion and find the musings of this blog valuable. Please let me know if there are any specific topics you’d like covered, and feel free to add your comments to the postings. If you need more in-depth help with strategic planning, contact me directly or check out my Website for more information on what 501(c)onsulting can offer you in that area.
Here’s to keeping the discussion going all year long!
We’ll talk again soon. . .
(Picture courtesy of Flickr)
Focus On:
This time, the focus is on “Sweet Songs” - a benefit album for the Mothers’ Milk Bank of Austin. Launching in May, the album will include 13 songs inspired by babies, children and motherhood. Learn more about the project and the wonderful nonprofit it supports at http://www.austinsweetsongs.com/.
If you would like to see your favorite nonprofit or association highlighted in future posts, contact me.
Comments
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Keep the discussion going! Feel free to add your comments to this posting, or e-mail me directly.