3rd String

I don’t know if y’all listen to Planet Money on NPR, but the project is run by great people translating all of the confusing economic news and happenings into layman’s terms–and its entertaining, too!

So when I saw Laura Conaway’s tweet (via @planetmoney) looking for stories about the job market, I couldn’t resist.  140 characters turned into a short 200 words or less piece for the Planet Money blog:

I, admittedly, have nothing to complain about.  I have a good and secure job that also happens to be with a nonprofit organization.  But I am also young and building my career. About a year ago, I decided I was ready for the next challenge and began looking to make my next move.

Nada. Nothing to even apply for.  Of course, my expectations were not high considering I live in Montana, but my town is credited with the highest per capita number of nonprofits in the US (or at least was at one time), so I held some faith that over a year, something would spark my interest.

And I’m not alone. I’ve had any number of conversations with other folks my age (30-ish) who are either in the same boat–or worse–are finding themselves competing with seasoned professionals and baby boomers who, under other circumstances, would no longer be in the job market.  Now THAT is frustrating for a young person looking to develop their career, and who may consider themselves “next generation’s leaders”. It leaves one with diminishing hope when we find ourselves competing with people who should be retired. Maybe now we should start calling ourselves the next-after-the-next generation’s leaders–the “3rd string”.

How is the economy effecting other next generation leaders?

 

# 6.5 on Robert Eggers Top 10

First, if you haven’t read it–take a moment and check out Robert Eggers new blog post Top 10 Things I Learned from the Under 30s–and don’t forget to read the comments, too.  Great conversation happening over there.

Lateral movement.  There was a time when I would have balked at the idea that lateral movement was anything more than an excuse not to give you a raise.  But when I read Eggers’ post, I thought of a number of ways that an employer could enhance an employee’s experience without needing to find a way to move them up the ladder:

• Go into Outlook and look at the calendar of your Under 30s: are they getting out of the office?   Are they going to conferences?  Are you putting their name out there as potential speakers on their work?  Not only does this give them an opportunity to build their skills by representing the organization, but to build their network, too.
• Are they getting out ‘in the field’ and meeting the people they are benefiting?
• Even if I’m a Program Associate, if I feel that the knowledge and skills I’m gaining are recognized as valuable, by my organization and others in the field, then I feel like I’m going somewhere even when my title isn’t changing.
• Do they have projects they can own?

And I think that this goes well beyond the under 30s–to ALL nonprofit workers who don’t feel valued or heard, feel stuck and without options for advancement, and who work for organizations where the upper management makes multiple times that of the lower and even middle-management.

 

Building Your Network in a Rural Area – or – How to avoid shooting yourself in the foot

Note: This is a slightly revised version of my guest post on the New Voices of Philanthropy blog:

Working for a foundation with national giving programs, I have the privilege of seeing what is happening in rural communities across America.  Working for a national foundation has helped me to grasp the common threads among the grassroots organizations in my field-their context, operating environment and unique challenges.  We have the additional privilege, in my opinion, of being one of a few foundations located in a small city in a very rural state.   Building my network here in Montana has been important, both professionally and personally, to consider my own experiences and how they relate to those of my grantees.  Following are reflections on my experiences growing up and living in rural towns across the west:

Rule 1: Don’t Burn Your Bridges

So maybe this rule is universal.  But no where more so than in a rural area.  That intern that you supervised last semester and were glad to be rid of?  Just wait, they could be on the hiring committee for your next job.  The co-worker that you struggle with every time you have to work with them?  Don’t tell them off in your ‘I’m leaving this joint” elation–they could be friends with your new boss.  The degrees of separation are few to none.  Be ready to walk the fine line of being friends with your co-workers and bosses.  And if you’re not friends, work on creating positive working relationships at least.

Rule 2: Relationships are Everything

Again, its nothing you haven’t heard. But in a rural community, the next job you get is likely not even going to be in the paper–its going to come through your personal or professional network (which are the same thing-see Rule 1).   I’m not talking about your Linkedin Network (though I have one), I’m talking about your grocery-store-shopping, coffee- & beer-drinking, dentist and hair stylist, and maybe your mom-on-Facebook network.

Rule 3: Be Patient-Be Flexible

That ideal job you’re after?  Sit down, get comfortable.  It could be awhile.  For that reason, it would do you good to be flexible.  Your career trajectory is not likely to mirror anything you see on TV or in the Movies.  Make the most of the job you have because you may be there for awhile–and rather than wasting all that good time, make the most of it. Look for every opportunity to learn a new skill, offer to help the folks in other departments, get on a board.  Better yet, work on getting on the board of the organization you want to work for.

If you are determined to move on from your current job-likely you will have to think a bit more broadly about what you are hoping to gain and the skills you want to develop.  This may mean working for a for-profit to gain sales skills that could be put to work as a development director or associate.

Rule 4: Learn to face your foes head-on

If you’re the type to run away when conflicts arise, then rural living may not be for you.  Leaving your job when the heat rises is often not an option.  Instead, the lack of alternatives challenges you to face the situation head-on and try to figure out how to work through it.  I’m not saying this is the best practice every time, but when you get the initial urge to bolt, you wmight realize that the job you have is the only one in your field.  Now’s the time to bone up on your conflict resolution and difficult conversation skills–they are good to have in your toolbox anywhere you live.

These rules affect how we work.  I believe they are some of the reasons why collaborative conservation efforts work.  Because you can’t operate in a vaccuum, you must “reach across the aisle” or perhaps more aptly “reach across the fence” and try to work out your differences.  Otherwise, its likely to come around and bite you in the butt.

How have these and other rules affected the way you work?

 

Thoughts on Young People and Farming

In response to Leslie Hatfield’s article, Starting Farming on the Cheap: An Interview with Two Young Farmers.

After spending an evening discussing the seemingly insurmountable challenges faced by my farmer friends, this article is a welcome ray of light. I cannot imagine the weight of the debt burden that so many young (and not so young) farmers carry, feel they must carry, just to get into the business of farming. Land prices are far out of reach for most, and lending practices work against them by requiring a majority of the value of the property to be held in the residential structures, rather than the land.

Most farmers I know farm full-time in addition to their “day” jobs. Can we expect them to continue like this? Just to pay their mortgage?

One thing I will say, is that local food is moving more and more to the center of people’s minds. For example, I know of four weddings this summer, including my own, where the food and in some cases the flowers will be grown by local farmers.

Most will be dealing directly with our local Grower’s Cooperative, which boasts around 30 farmer-owners and offers everything from veggies to poultry and meat. In addition, this year they are launching a new take on the CSA: create your CSA box online. Customers will be able to log on to their website and choose the contents of their CSA share for that week. Brilliant.

 

Leadership for the Long Haul: Pt. 2

Awhile back, I wrote about an amazing leadership training that was being offered for emerging leaders in the community-based conservation and community development fields, and the challenge I faced getting my employer to support me and my goals to become the best leader I can be.

I am happy to report that I am now almost half-way through the 6-month training–and it’s been everything I hoped it would be.  Challenging for one.  Rewarding for another.

I have decided to write about my experiences so far both to share and to help me reflect in a deeper way on the things that I have learned and put to work so far:

• Set Your Intentions:

Barbara Wyckoff, of Dynamica Coaching & Capacity-Building and our teacher for the Leadership Training, asks herself “Who do I want to show up as?” before each workshop or consulting job.  For me, answering this question before going to work in the morning, or before entering an important meeting, helps me to set my intentions for how I want to show up.  It helps me remember the person I want to be, and to embody the leadership qualities that I admire in others.

It seem like a small act, but it has helped me to get a new attitude about my job–which had begun to deteriorate in the months leading up to the training.

• Act, Don’t Think Your Way into Being a Better Leader:

As part of the leadership training, each of us gets bi-weekly coaching sessions with Barbara.  During one of the sessions I was feeling overwhelmed by the path ahead of me and the challenge of putting all that we had learned into action.  Barbara said something that helped me to put some of my feelings into perspective: she said that we cannot think out way into being better leaders, we must act our way into being the person we want to be.  As an Aquarian, mental planning is what I do best.  I can prepare for most anything and all of the associated contingencies without even trying.  Barbara’s advice really hit home.  It was only through each of my actions each day, especially those which I approached with intention, that I would learn to walk the path of a leader.

• Be Forgiving:

All of us have a little bit of the proverbial Catholic in them–the propensity to be overly critical of ourselves and beat ourselves up.  Probably the hardest lesson that I am learning is to be more forgiving of myself.  I cannot move forward when I am focusing my energy on where I am not, and what I cannot do.

• Be Thankful:

The other key to reviving my attitude has been a shift to the “glass half full” mentality.  I consider myself a pretty positive person, but even I can get stuck in ruts.  To maneuver out of these ones, I found myself thinking of the contents remaining in the glass.  With the recession in full swing, it started with being glad to have a good job.  Not a small thing, to be sure.  Then I began thinking of how much confidence I have gained since starting my current job.  About the lessons I have gleaned from my co-workers, the opportunities I have been given to put those skills to work.  And on it went, until these kinds of positive thought became a more natural way of thinking about the same things that had caused dark clouds before.

Up Next: Finding Your Purpose, Vision and Ideal Leader

 

Trendsetting: National Wildlife Federation & Social Media

I was just re-reading my post from awhile back on conservation groups being slow to enter the social media world, and wanted to share some news to the contrary.

The National Wildlife Federation’s Danielle Brigida recently offered a webinar through the Nonprofit Technology Network (NTEN) and TechSoup on Creating Social Buzz.

This webinar was the 4th in a 5-part series.  You can download the powerpoints and the recordings from the entire series on their website. You can also access their entire line up of upcoming webinars at www.nten.org/events/webinar.

I was very impressed.  She provides nuts and bolts tips on how to use twitter and other services to create a “buzz”.  Lots of take-home tools:

• The pros and cons of  social news sites like digg, mixx and reddit.  She even rates them against their traffic numbers, traffic quality, how engaged the community is, does it allow groups, etc. and what to look for when researching various social news sites based on your goals.
• How to streamline your use of social media–how to be strategic and save time such as Firefox add-ons for submitting content,
• How to get the most out of social bookmarking
• and more

Both NTEN and techsoup are great resources for the nonprofit community, helping them to stay on the cutting edge of technology.

What strategies have you used to successfully create a “buzz”?

 

So you don’t want to move to Washington D.C.

Neither do I.

Since entering the nonprofit field almost 3 years ago, I’ve been surprised by the number of people I know who “did their time” in DC. Working for a nonprofit (in my field this means working for a national conservation organization’s headquarters) in the capital seems to be a “right of passage” or more accurately, a hoop that many up and coming leaders feel that they need to put on their resume to make it in the field.

I do not want to move to DC, or New York, or any other big city just to move up.  However, I also realize that part of what you get from working in a big city are things that I miss:

• More & better access to peers in the field
• Organizations devoted to supporting emerging leaders
• A better finger on the “pulse” of the field

On the flip side, working from a city would not feel authentic for me.  How could I have credibility with the people whose lives I am trying to improve if I am all the way on the other side of the country—might as well be the world when you’re living in a rural community–I can tell you.

The question remains: how does one continue to build their career while going against the accepted route?

• Network, network, network
• Read as much as you can
• When you hear names thrown around that you do not know, look them up and learn something about them
• Get involved locally

And regardless of where you live, check out Rosetta Thurman’s blog, which is full of tips and inspiration–from work-life balance, to leading from the middle, asking for that raise, or pursuing professional development.

 

Boards: Engaging the Next Generation

Emily Davis from EDA Consulting had a great post awhile back on recruiting emerging leaders for your board. As I thought about this, I realized that the board I sit on, for a local food Co-op (which is not a nonprofit, but similar), is already there. We are young business owners, young nonprofit professionals, and young community leaders, as well as experienced community organizers, professors, and business-people, and others with a long and varied history to draw from. 

Why?

Well, Emily provides a great list in her post.  I would add:

• Young people will give you an entry into a new, and likely highly engaged community of new supporters.  
• Emerging leaders can help provide a bridge to understanding their generation and how it thinks, what it cares about, and what it is looking for in a cause
• On that same note, young people can help an organization engage new constituents through tools, namely social media.

In addition to the organizations Emily lists, take a look at the other nonprofits in your field.  Are there young emerging leaders in those organizations that you have worked with and could approach about serving on your board?  Ask your colleague’s if they have any bright, shining stars that might be interested.  

Its also a great way for an organization that cannot afford to promote their younger workers to encourage and support their development through introductions to leadership opportunities outside of work, such as serving on a board.

 

The (Young) Face of Community Forestry

I just came back from a fabulous three-day workshop that brought together leaders and practitioners in the field of community forestry and collaboration. It was actually a workshop that my foundation puts on every year. This was my second time organizing it, and I really put my heart into it–its one of the highlights of my job–bringing all of these small grassroots groups together from across the country to share their successes, challenges, lessons and passion.

And you know what? A lot of these people look a lot like me. They are young, passionate, energetic, forward thinking and innovative. They are working in rural communities, alongside their neighbors, friends and enemies to improve not only their local natural resources, but their community and economy, too. More importantly, they are making it possible for the next generation to lead a meaningful life connected to the land and community in a way that values their heritage and traditions.

But even better, they did not all look like me. They were young, old, liberal, conservative, loud and quiet. And I am honored to be working in the same field with these inspiring leaders.

 

Not the "L" Word Again

No, I am not referring to the drama series on Showtime. I have been a bit redundant in my last few posts, so I am swearing to not talk about the “l” word for awhile.

What I want to talk about is technology. Nonprofits have been slow on the uptake when it comes to technology. I would argue that Conservation groups have been even slower. Here in Missoula and in many cities around the country are groups called 501 Tech Clubs (as in 501c3). These clubs are local chapters or affinity groups of the Nonprofit Technology Network. Whose mission is:

NTEN aspires to a world where all nonprofit organizations skillfully and confidently use technology to meet community needs and fulfill their missions.

We are the membership organization of nonprofit technology professionals. Our members share the common goal of helping nonprofits use all aspects of technology more effectively.

We believe that technology allows nonprofits to work with greater social impact. We enable our members to strategically use technology to make the world a better, just, and equitable place.

NTEN facilitates the exchange of knowledge and information within our community. We connect our members to each other, provide professional development opportunities, educate our constituency on issues of technology use in nonprofits, and spearhead groundbreaking research, advocacy, and education on technology issues affecting our entire community.

At my organization, I hear the comment a lot that “our grantees and partners don’t use technology, they are too rural, they spend too much time in the woods” etc. And I remind them, not all community-forestry practitioners are your age any more (i.e. in their 40s or older). There are lots of young people getting involved in this field and they are undoubtedly using blogs and RSS feeds and other web-based services to find information.

I think my organization is doing a great job in moving past the “grantmakers only give money” typology by integrating non-monetary technical assistance such as referrals, coaching, mentoring, peer learning teleconferences, etc. We are even trying to begin offering podcasts and blogs.

But we also have a ways to go. Like many nonprofits, we don’t have the ability to hire someone to take explore and create New Media and Social Networking opportunities–it could be a full-time job. IN fact at Meyer Memmorial Trust, it is! They have done an outstanding job (and service) to the philanthropic and nonprofit field through the development of their networking and information sharing technology called Connec+ipedia. I would encourage everyone reading this blog to check out the Connec+ipedia website and share your knowledge and resources with the community.

How are you and/or your organization using new media tools?