20/20 Vision

“Vision without action is a dream. Action without vision is simply passing the time. Action with Vision is making a positive difference.” - Joel Barker

This past year or so has been tough for a lot of people - and for a lot of organizations. Many are struggling to find a job, to find health insurance coverage, to find donors and members. . . Inspiration to seek a better way can be hard when you’re just trying to get through each day, but dreaming of what the future can hold is sometimes the driving force for change.

In the last post we covered Mission Statements - the foundation of your existence and operations. Once you’ve defined who you are, it’s time to move to who you want to be. That’s where a Vision Statement comes in. Your dreams are found in the Vision Statement; how does the future “you” look? The Mission and Vision Statements should tie together so that you don’t veer too far off from one trying to attain the other. Consider this as the destination you want to reach, and let it frame the course and actions you take in planning. (See The Right Path for more on this.)

I have several friends and relatives who have been laid off this past year, and new jobs have not surfaced quickly for them. In the meantime, it has been a chance to step back and reconsider where they’ve been and if that’s the direction they want to keep moving. For some, it has meant going back to school to learn new skills so they can try different professions; for others, it has meant going into business for themselves. For all of them, though, a Vision of what they want has to be foremost in their minds before they determine which course of action to take. Just blasting out resumes to job postings doesn’t cut it in this climate. “Action without vision is simply passing the time.”

Organizations face similar things all the time - not just during a Recession. Donations and memberships wax and wane, and new programs or needs come along that may change your direction and focus. A Vision Statement is crucial to moving forward in a positive direction. You can’t prepare for the future if you don’t know where you want to go. Even children learn that if they “want to be a doctor when they grow up” they have to stay in school and study certain things. If an organization wants to serve an expanding population it needs to plan for increased programs; if it wants to reach a larger membership base, it has to offer better benefits and market to more diverse groups.

Your goals and objectives should help you reach that future Vision, while also fitting with your present-day Mission. These two elements form the core of strong Strategic Planning. They set the stage for your organization’s success. A great stage is just the beginning, though. You’ll still need the “action” that happens on that stage to be effective. As stated above, “Action with Vision is making a positive difference.”

We’ll cover how to combine the Action and Vision in the next post.

Stay tuned. We’ll talk again soon. . .
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Focus On:

[In the spirit of being “501 Focused,” this blog highlights a nonprofit or association with each posting.]

Our nonprofit focus this time is on the Wesleyan Homes Foundation.

Wesleyan Homes is an inclusive ministry for older adults through the United Methodist Church. They “value older adults as spiritual resources and as independent individuals with dignity and worth, functioning within an interdependent community.”

Gifts to their Benevolent Fund provide assistance so Wesleyan Homes can “continue its mission to provide care for older adults without regard to their ability to pay. In fact, no resident has ever been asked to leave a Wesleyan Homes facility because they could not pay the full cost of their care.”

The need is great and their Vision is clear. To learn more, go here: http://www.wesleyanhomes.org/difference.php

What’s the Label Say?

"I don't care what you label me as long as you call me president." - Howard Dean

Business owner, nonprofit consultant, writer. . .these are some labels that could be used to define me. They don’t tell the whole story, though. Even if I add “mother, wife, volunteer. . .” or throw in “artist, singer, gardener. . .” it still doesn’t convey who I truly am.

Labels are limiting, but that’s what we’re asked to create when we articulate a mission statement for an organization. The foundation of your existence and operations, a mission statement identifies who you are, who you serve, and what you provide, in one to three precisely-worded sentences. It should be something easy to remember and convey, and all of your goals and tasks should relate back to it.

I always start a strategic planning process by examining the group’s mission statement. Sometimes it stands the test of time, sometimes it just needs to be tweaked a little bit, and sometimes we have to chuck it and start over from scratch. If you’re going to use strategic planning to “chart out a path to your future vision,” as I stated in my last post, taking a really good look at your mission statement needs to be your first step.

You may already have a well-defined mission statement and a good sense of who you are and what you do, especially if your organization has been around for awhile. Even so, take the time to make sure the statement is concise enough to share with others, and that your goals can all be tied to it.

Here’s one example from a group I’ve worked with recently: Williamson County Children’s Advocacy Center's mission is “to provide a safe place to report child abuse, reduce the emotional trauma, and extend professional services that protect the integrity of an investigation.” That’s pretty clear and understandable to anyone. Not only is it concise and to-the-point, it allows for all their goals to be fed off the statement.

Breaking it down into parts, we see that what they offer is:

• “a safe place to report child abuse,
• reduce the emotional trauma, and
• extend professional services that protect the integrity of an investigation.”

They can check to see that their goals are accomplishing their mission by asking questions of each one:

Do they provide a “safe place to report child abuse?” - Yes, their new building is designed and decorated to be a friendly house structure, rather than something cold and sterile (like a police station), and their staff and volunteers are trained in servicing children and non-offending family members.

Are they focused on “reducing the emotional trauma?” - Yes, interviews are videotaped to reduce the number of times a child has to describe his or her abuse to everyone involved in the intervention, investigation, and prosecution process.

What “professional services” are offered to “protect the integrity of an investigation?” - The Center only interviews an alleged victim with a referral from either law enforcement or child protective services. One or both of these agencies are present for the interview and watch the interview via closed circuit TV from an adjoining room. In addition to the interviews, they offer crisis intervention, victim advocacy, case tracking, referrals for assistance and other specialized services.

In this group’s case, they found the labels that help define their services.

As an organization considers taking on new projects or plans to change services, the mission statement should drive what is done. If the project or program doesn’t truly - and effectively - fulfill your mission, maybe you shouldn’t be doing it. Alternatively, even if a program isn’t self-sustaining and drains financial resources, if it is at the core of who you are, you need to find ways to keep it going. Or change who you say you are.

And that brings us to an organization’s Vision, which we’ll discuss in the next post.

Stay tuned. We’ll talk again soon. . .
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Focus On:

In the spirit of being “501 Focused,” this blog highlights a nonprofit or association with each posting.]

Our nonprofit focus this time is on the Williamson County Children’s Advocacy Center (WCCAC), a nonprofit organization that provides needed assistance to abused children, non-offending family members, and the professionals dedicated to the intervention, investigation, prosecution, and treatment options related to child abuse cases. This organization offers all services free of charge thanks to grant assistance, individual and business financial donations, community support, and gifts-in-kind, and recently launched a new interactive Website to better serve its constituents and relate its mission to the community.

Their mission is clear - both to them and their clients - and the labels they use to define themselves actually fit who they are. Find out more from their Website: http://www.wilcocac.org/.