The roots of generosity

This has been a year of quiet transformation. As our society settles into what is actually the "new normal" that we kept hearing about during the pandemic, the reality is that changes are occurring all around us and likely in ways that will seem revolutionary within a decade.

Yet, more often than not change is not a big revolutionary moment but instead a series of important steps taken toward what we hope is progress. And these changes are being put into motion by billions of people living their lives, not just a handful of individuals who have vast resources at their disposal.

At the beginning of this year, I committed myself to researching what is driving the majority of decisions and resources in the nonprofit sector, specifically focusing on what impacts small to midsized nonprofits. And that research has opened my eyes to the fundamental nature of who we are as a sector and why we matter.

Nothing is more emblematic of what is right and wrong in our society than the nonprofit sector.

• The sector is one of the most trusted institutions in our society, yet that trust is being hurt by a misunderstanding of its role in our society
• There are over a trillion dollars placed into the economic engines of the nonprofit sector, yet 90% of nonprofits make less than $1 million a year
• 90% of nonprofits are collecting data, yet nearly 50% of professionals don't know how that data is collected or used strategically

Our insistence upon putting money before people has started to lead us toward a reality where the fundamental role of the nonprofit sector could shift toward irrelevancy within 50 years. I've been a fan of the book The Generosity Crisis for its stark outline of a world without nonprofits, locking into reality something that I truly believe would deeply hurt society itself.

We have ignored the roots of our sector's role in building community, instead managing resources in a way that barely keeps people in jobs for more than 18 months.

I truly believe that the nonprofit sector can step into its rightful place is the truest center of innovation in our society - not companies focused on profit. We are seeing this friction play out across every facet of how we structure the infrastructure that makes our world work and people are coming to the stark realization that there is something very off about how things have been set up.

Getting back to our roots

Earlier this week I had the pleasure of walking through the Cypress Gardens at Legoland Florida with my friend and coworker Abby Jarvis . She visited my family and we purposely saved the botanic area so she could lend her expertise in all things botany to our exploration of the park.

We came across a decades on Banyan tree, which was started in 1936 by Dick Pope Sr. and his wife in a five-gallon bucket! It has now expanded into a beautiful and mighty tree with roots spread in all directions. Abby explained that the Banyan tree would grow and develop accessory trunks through roots that would touch the ground, expanding its reach over the years.

It was one of the most spiritually moving moments of my life, standing in front of this majestic tree that seemed like it was plucked out of a fantasy novel. Its very existence validated that there is something deeper going on in our world and that we are best when understanding how connected we all truly are.

There is a lot of pain and hurt in the world today. Yet, there is also so much love and beauty if we allow ourselves to see it. By getting back to the roots of what makes us great, the nonprofit sector can take its rightful place is the epicenter of compassionate innovation and human-centric design.

The world I want my children to live and thrive in is one where generosity experiences have influenced all other types of experiences, not the other way around.

There is no rot at the roots of generosity.

When we stop and look at when people are given the right resources and the space to do their jobs, there is an amazing ecosystem of generosity happening right in front of us.

As we close out another chapter in our collective lives, I hope that 2024 becomes a year where we embrace that iterative transformation is not only possible but at the very foundation of our society's success.

Next year, I'll be changing up how I approach the way I talk about generosity experiences and begin to put into practice what I've learned over the past year. I cannot wait to begin this journey alongside all of the people doing the real work toward making our world one that not just survives but thrives.

See you next year.

Top 5 Posts of 2023

I've had a lot of new followers this year, so I wanted to share the top posts from the past year that resonated with folks like you:

1. Overcoming complaints about #GivingTuesday
2. Nonprofits don't send too many emails
3. Sober Friendly Events
4. A rant about Amazon Smile
5. GivingTuesday is not the Nonprofit Hunger Games