10 Phrases Every ED Can Use
Do you ever feel like you’re so mired down in the day-to-day minutiae that you just don’t have time to see the big picture? No time to implement new processes or ideas?
Being an Executive Director is a BIG job especially when you’re leading a little organization, one with little to no staff, save for you. And that’s when it’s especially important to operate like a manager; like the CEO that you are.
In my experience as a former (“recovering”) Executive Director, our board met once a month and it somehow always turned into an idea mill. By the end of those meetings, board members had scads of new, fabulous ideas. For ME to plan and implement. My to-do list got longer every time they met. Not to mention all the suggestions and ideas I fielded from donors and well-meaning community members.
So what’s an ED to do with a to-do list a mile long (and growing) and only 24 hours in a day…16 of which shouldn’t have to be on the clock? Here’s a list of suggested phrases and responses every ED should keep in their back pocket to exhibit good management skills and curate a more intentional board and team of volunteers.
1. That’s a really interesting idea. If you were me, how would you go about implementing (planning, funding, etc.) that? (Then wait for the response.) Great plan! Let me know what tools and resources you need to get that going and let’s meet next month one-on-one so you can update me on the progress.
2. Let me put you in touch with our treasurer so the two of you can determine if we have the budget for this so you can proceed with gathering a committee to work on that.
3. This would be a great opportunity for our XXXXX committee, I’ll talk to the committee chairman to see if you can attend their next meeting to introduce this idea to them.
4. Please take some time to map out this idea on paper for us. How many volunteers would be needed to carry out your idea? How much money? What other resources would we need? What’s the timeline? What local businesses/organizations could you bring in to partner with us on this? Do you think you could put that together by the next meeting?
5. I like the idea. Can you please tell me how this relates to our mission?
6. Our strategic plan defines our goals as X, Y, and Z. Which of these do you see this project/program/idea as helping us to achieve?
7. Since our fiscal year budget has already been finalized, which currently planned program/project would it be appropriate for us to reappropriate funding from in order to carry out your idea?
8. Since our fiscal year budget has already been finalized, what type of fundraiser would you be willing to carry out in order to fund your idea?
9. Let me put you in touch with “so and so” at XXXXX, Inc. – I know they’re working on something similar. Perhaps you can find out if we could partner on a project like that. Please report back to the board next month and let us know what you find out.
10. These are all wonderful ideas. Let’s talk about what’s reasonable for us to implement and discuss the possibility of funding an additional staff member in the next fiscal year to help us move in these directions.
As you can see, none of these suggestions allude to you telling people you’re already too busy, spread too thin, etc. The idea is to hold yourself and your time in great esteem. You can’t do it all. And you shouldn’t have to. Sometimes it feels like board members are a table full of our bosses, in reality, they’re a team of volunteers who are meant to be helping carry out the plans/work of the organization (if they’re a working board). It’s up to the Executive Director to direct, to manage, to oversee. You don’t need to make excuses of why “this isn’t the best use of my time”, you merely need to remind people that there’s a team in place and proper channels for ideas to flow. Protect your time, your mission, and your resources. You’ll be able to accomplish so much more when you delegate and manage * from the top instead of from the trenches.
* Link to YouTube video on this topic.
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