This post discusses crucial insights from interviews with 12 nonprofit executive directors.
To prepare for starting my new business Mission Possible Strategies, I interviewed 12 executive directors to gain insights into their dreams, goals, and challenges. You’ll find some of the questions and answers below.
Insight 1: What do you love most about being an Executive Director?
- Making great things happen
- Having a reason to get up every morning
- Being part of the change
- Building synergy in the community
Insight 2: If you had a vision for your career as an Executive Director, paint me a picture of what that would look and feel like for you?”
- To gain and maintain the confidence and trust of all the people involved in the agency
- Helping everyone know about the great work we do and actually understand it
- I would love for the funding to be sustainable so I don’t have to stress out about money
- I want to be able to manage all these different hats I wear effectively
Insight 3: What do you find challenging about being an executive director?
- “Executive directors have a short shelf life. We are so concerned about all the people we serve and our staff, so we put ourselves lower on the ladder of self-care. I had to learn the hard way.“
- “Being an executive director can be very lonely. We’re trying to do our best and manage so many things and keep ourselves healthy. There is this attitude, Well, you’re the ED –you’re supposed to do everything!”
- “Board members have so many different personalities — so many cooks in the kitchen! It contributes to frustration, and if the board doesn’t understand its role, it’s even more difficult. “
- “A couple of years ago the doctor told me I was headed for a heart attack. It was a huge wake-up call for me. I’m only 44. I was running myself into the ground by taking care of the agency. There has got to be a better way. No one can afford for us to start dropping!”
- “It was stressful when I started because I didn’t have any executive director experience or training. The organization was flat and didn’t have room for promotion. I was in the programs department where I didn’t have to do budgets and monitor grants and read financial statements and deal with HR issues. People often think that because you ran the programs you can be the Executive director with no problem, but that’s not necessarily true.”
Summary: I hope hearing about these insights from other executive directors has been helpful. Being an executive director can be one of the most difficult and lonely jobs in the world but resources are available. Download your free copy of “4 Tips for Running Your Nonprofit Without Getting Run Down.”
