A few years back, somebody used the phrase “slow down to speed up” in my presence and it really resonated. Doing some quick google searches, I found dozens of articles that reference the phrase, although nothing that showed me who first said it.
Years ago I also learned of an alternative saying: “There’s so much to do, I must move very slowly” which is often attributed to the Buddha.
Regardless of who coined the phrases, I feel “slow down to speed up” is great advice for many of the nonprofits with whom I’ve worked. And as the New Year hits, I’d strongly encourage nonprofits to think about it before accelerating into 2022.
The bottom-line challenge: nonprofits often get so caught up in the small, urgent things that “demand” our attention that we don’t pay sufficient attention to the “why” and the “how,” leading to all sorts of inefficiencies that decrease our ability to advance the mission of our nonprofits.
Put another way, to increase our impact, we need to be more deliberate in the actions we take.
Why is this the case? And how can nonprofit leaders slow themselves down with long-term effectiveness in mind?
Why can going too fast lead to inefficiencies?
To be sure, you can be paralyzed by indecision and thus not take actions needed.
For most nonprofit leaders I’ve worked with, though, the opposite is the challenge. The tendency to act too quickly has repercussions on at least four different levels:
- At the tactical level, trying to do too many different things at once often leads to errors. These mistakes subsequently cost time and energy when they’re discovered. Or, short of mistakes, activities are done shoddily and that reflects poorly on the organization (which can negatively influence the commitment of donors, volunteers, and stakeholders).
- At the relationship level, a relentless focus on your “to do” list can lead you to underinvest in the time-consuming task of having longer conversations with organizational partners that are necessary for long-term alignment and success.
- At the strategic level, rushing to get to your destination increases the risk that you actually aren’t using the best method to get there. Using a map analogy, you may try the most obvious direct route between point A and point B, but perhaps you’ve ignored the lay of the land in between the two points (e.g. a mountain), meaning the fastest route was actually going around the obstacle. Or, continuing the map analogy, it may be the terrain between point A and B requires you to use a different vehicle (e.g. you need an entirely different strategy).
- Also at the strategic level, still thinking about maps, rushing towards your destination without sufficient attention sometimes means you’re headed to the wrong destination entirely, given your mission and the community needs you’re trying to meet. In most cases, this is because you’re headed where you’ve always headed as an organization, even though circumstances have changed sufficiently for a strategic reset.
- Lastly, at the personal level, trying to maximize the number of things you get done increases the odds that stress and frustration will burn you out. This can lead to employee turnover that creates big organizational challenges, especially at small nonprofits.
Put another way: Slowing down allows for more attention to tasks, more robust relationships, more strategic decision-making, and a better work-life balance.
How do you slow down when there’s so much to do?
I’ve laid out all the above in a conversation with one nonprofit Executive Director whose organization perennially struggles and I can hear their voice as they say to me: “but there’s too much to do right now to take the time you’re suggesting.”
I don’t want to underestimate the challenge organizations and people face when they want to “slow down to speed up,” but the challenge can be overcome.
Here are five strategies that can help in this situation, both for individuals and organizations:
- Use the 5-95 or 10-90 rule for planning versus doing.
If you’re not setting aside at least 5% of your time (2 hours per week), or better yet 10% of your time (4 hours per week) for planning, you’re not spending enough time planning. If planning isn’t your natural instinct, force yourself to set aside time on your calendar for planning (e.g. every Tuesday afternoon is set aside for planning and unavailable for meetings).
Set aside time both for personal and organizational planning. Personally, ask yourself at least weekly, “what are my priorities” in light of the organization’s top priorities? Organizationally, you should have top priorities, whether established via a strategic plan, an annual work plan, or functional plans (e.g. development/fundraising, communications, etc.).
Admittedly, I have a conflict of interest in urging every organization to have a strategic plan, but every organization should have alignment (board and staff leadership) around your organizational purpose, the long-term outcomes you’re seeking to achieve, and the primary activities you’re engaged in that lead to those outcomes. (Whether or not you call it a “strategic plan” and what terminology you use (e.g. “goals”, “mission,” “strategies,” etc.) is immaterial).
2. Calendar for relationship-building
In your goal-setting and in your calendar, be explicit that you’re setting aside time for longer, relationship-building meetings, whether with board members, allied organizations, or other stakeholders. When I was an Executive Director, the commitment I settled upon was two such longer meetings per month. I forced myself to treat these conversations as very big-picture and relationship-focused rather than task-focused.
3. Let go of some things
It can be incredibly freeing to have some things you’ve done before that you let go of as an individual and/or organization. I inherited some strategies when I became an Executive Director that I felt compelled (initially) to continue, even though I had some doubts about their effectiveness. When (after some planning) we let go of those strategies to free up space to dive deeper into other existing strategies, it felt liberating. And led to more organizational impact.
Beyond strategies, at the more tactical level, ask yourself periodically, what are some things that can be streamlined? Are there things you do now where spending half the time would yield 90% of the benefit? Give your team at least a couple times per year when you think specifically about this question instead of just assuming your tactics and organizational procedures are set in stone or will somehow “streamline themselves” on an ad hoc basis.
4. Consider some form of mindfulness practice
This is more at the individual than organizational level, but it’s important to provide yourself mental space. For some, that’s meditation. For others, that’s exercise or yoga. I’ve had some of my best inspirations about nonprofit strategies when riding my bike for fun, even though that was definitely not my intent when setting out on the ride.
Organizationally, I also had some luck taking some meetings outside whether sitting on a park bench or walking. There are some notetaking challenges this way, so it’s not for every meeting, but for some types of meetings it can give 2-3 participants the mental space to think outside the box.
5. Talk to your board about this specific challenge
If you’re an Executive Director and you want to slow down to speed up, but you feel that the ideas above just won’t cut it, set aside time at a board meeting or hold a meeting with a few key board members to discuss this precise topic.
Your board leadership may have creative ideas and may give you the “permission” you need to let go of some organizational activities (in the short run) in order to generate more organizational success (in the long run).
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Do you have other suggestions to your peers about how to slow down to speed up? Please share them!