When you started your organization you probably had big dreams. Dreams about having more time, or solving a certain problem, or living a certain lifestyle. All too often, our dreams can get lost in the daily grind of operating our organization.

Is this just “reality,” or is there a better way? I think there is a better way. I believe that you can:

  • Work with clients who genuinely appreciate the work you do.
  • Work with clients who will pay you what your services are worth.
  • Have your days be filled with things you really like to do.
  • Spend more time with the people you really like being around.
  • Create a business that supports your life rather than taking over your life.
  • Walk away at the end of the day with the satisfaction of knowing that you made a difference.

You can have all of these things in your organization whether you are for-profit, nonprofit, or something in between.

Our big dream is to help organizations who are dedicated to positive social change. We envision a community full of business owners growing businesses that help them achieve a bigger purpose than just a paycheck. We envision nonprofits with defined strategies and a diverse funding base that turns their dreams of making the world a better place into reality.

For us, organization development consulting is a way to have a positive impact not just in our own community, but in communities across the world. We have done what we suggest to you, start with the big picture of what you want in your life, and then let your organization (and your marketing plan) become the vehicle to help you achieve those goals. This is why we put such an emphasis on creating a plan and a strategy before jumping into anything else. Strategy dictates what your organization will do so that you can achieve your goals.

As you are working on your budgets for next year, why not try this approach–rather than allocating some percentage of revenue or prior years expenses to the same line items, start by creating a picture of what you would like your life, your organization, to look like during the coming year. Next, determine how much revenue your business will have to generate to support those goals. Now, figure out what it is going to take to generate that much revenue. I think you will find that taking this approach will change budgeting from an academic exercise to something you will be excited about doing and achieving.

Our big dream is to help you realize your big dream. Contact us to talk about what you’re doing and what you need to get there.

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Agency: NAMM Foundation
Award Range: $20,000 to $40,000
Eligibility: Nonprofit Organizations
Description:
The NAMM Foundation supports programs for people of all ages that utilize music-making materials, are replicable as regional, national or international models, and include outcomes and impact measures. The NAMM Foundation supports programs for people of all ages thatutilize music-making materials, are replicable as regional, national orinternational models, and include outcomes and impact measures,
Closing Date: September 30, 2010

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Most, if not all, ‘in charge’ people are seeking to move their project, program, or organization to ‘the next level.’ What they may not realize is that moving to the next level is not an exercise of pooling all of your resources and knowledge. The next level arrives when you have abandoned all you think you know, in order to learn what you do not. Learning how to unlearn is the attainment of the next level.

Every organization has to prepare for the abandonment of everything it does. –Peter Drucker

Unlearning is an intentional activity that addresses the discrepancy between the current reality and the existing body of knowledge. Engaging in this intentional process in preparation for change or to effectively manage change is difficult primarily because there is a lack of conscious awareness that the current behaviors and / or knowledge no longer work.

Too often individuals and organizations blame the environment, and not their inability to deal with the changing landscape, as a reason for failure. This is the foremost indicator that a mindset change is needed and learning and unlearning must be instilled in either the individual or the organization.

Unlearning is the key not only to effectively managing change, but also for generating new knowledge. The unlearning organization is always looking for ways to improve, always fixing what isn’t broken.

But learning to unlearn is extremely challenging. Habitual ways of seeing and responding to the environment are difficult to step out of, and the need to do so is perhaps the most challenging aspect of developing strategic thinking. It only results from systematic practice and discipline.

Unlearning requires:

  • Seeing what needs to be changed
  • Big picture thinking
  • Willingness to let go
  • Introspection

Winning organizations are willing to take the time to practice unlearning so that they can do what they do better, and go further than they thought they could.

Reference:

Pourdehnad, John, Warren, Bruce, Wright, Maureen, Mairano, John. Unlearning/Learning Organizations – The Role of Mindset, Ackoff Center for Advancement of Systems Approaches, University of Pennsylvania, Department of Electrical and Systems Engineering.

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