The Valley of Indecision

Monday January 10, 2022 comments Tags: nonprofit, podcast, accounting, , new year, indecision

Any accounting business and tax advice contained in this here podcast is not intended as a thorough in-depth analysis of specific issues, nor is it a substitute for forming information, nor is it sufficient to avoid tax related penalties. If you have specific questions that you need advice for, be sure to schedule a strategy session and not solely rely on information in this podcast.

Hey, it's Chyla Graham. Welcome to another season of The Nonprofit Ace Podcast. Happy 2022. So today I really want to talk to you about the valley of indecision. So it is January, everyone, or a lot of people I should say, have really talked about goals and goal setting. And I am whew, the planner in me loves it, but we also have to recognize that there are times when we are in just a space where we can't make decisions, where we feel like there are so many decisions to make that we don't know what the step forward is. And as a nonprofit leader, as someone who wants you to really feel like let's just take the next step, I want to give you some tools, some ideas of what that could look like. So when you are in the valley of indecision, as a nonprofit leader, make a list of what all those decisions are and rank them.

Try to talk to yourself about what is going to be the biggest driver of what's happening at your organization. What is going to be the biggest thing that causes you guys anguish or stress and go with that, not because it's easy, but because if you go with, okay, what is going to be the biggest problem to solve? Everything else will feel a little bit easier.

So 2019, I decided that I wanted to compete in a powerlifting meet. So October, I was like, hey, October, 2019, I was like, I'm going to compete in 2020 because that is going to be the hardest thing I'm going to do. I knew that I had really big goals for 2020, and I just really wanted to say like, I need a way to get out of my head and out of how hard those things will be and give myself a physical challenge.

And so I had to say, okay, I'm going to commit to working with a coach who's going to be like, you need to lift. I was lifting probably four days a week and get my strength up and you have to do the same. If you're in the valley of it indecision of like, Ooh, which of these decisions do I need to make? Go with the hardest one.

What is going to be the one that is going to drive you the furthest and the longest. Also think about what is going to be your deadline. The reason that we stay there so long is because we have no end date. And so just giving yourself a firm end date, everything is arbitrary, time is a myth. All these dates that we make up anyway are just for show. They are to give deadlines and a sense of urgency.

And so just say, okay, it is January 11th, I am actually going to make this decision by January 31 and we will move on.

This will free up so much more brain space because now you can operate from that space. And so if you're an organization who's thinking, okay, we need to have seven versions of the budget, that is going to take you down a rabbit hole. And so if your board is like, we need to have all these options, give them the idea of like, how about we just pick one option, and then in three months we reevaluate?

There is no harm in changing your mind. That is not the same as being indecisive. Being indecisive is like, I'm going to play all options. That is not a good use of your energy and your resources. And as nonprofit leaders, you just don't have that many.

And so to get yourself out of the value of indecision, go ahead and make a list of all the things that you are undecided about. Think about what's going to be the hardest thing. What is going to be the thing that will push you and your organization the furthest if you aim for it?

Make a decision on that and decide if you want to reevaluate that in 90 days, three months, two months, a month, whatever that looks like. And that way you can move forward, see what the results are and go ahead. So that's my new year's. Happy New Year's to you all. Please, myself included, let's just get out of the valley of indecision.

Let's make a choice, act on it, see what the results are, and then reevaluate our decision rather than leaving everything around us in limbo. All right then.

To all you nonprofit leaders who are looking for some support, looking for a place to get some ideas on what to have on your to do list, what should you be thinking ahead towards? Welcome to The Nonprofit Ace Podcast. I'm your host, Chyla Graham and I am here to support you on that journey.

Hi, I have recognized that a lot of nonprofit leaders are really uncomfortable talking about money. And that is one of the reasons why we started The Nonprofit Ace Podcast was to get more people to say like, oh, I can do this. This is not that complicated.

I do recognize though that sometimes we need to go a step deeper. And so we are having a webinar. So we actually dig into how your financials and good reporting, understanding your financials, will actually lead to better fundraising outcomes, deepening your impact, serving your community more, all of those things. So definitely check out the show notes for the link to sign up. Bye.

Thanks for listening to another episode of The Nonprofit Ace Podcast. Be sure to follow the Nonprofit Ace Podcast on your favorite podcast player so you never miss an episode. If you want to continue the conversation, follow me on Instagram @CNRGadvisory. I want to hear from you so be sure to send me a DM if you have any questions that you want to get answered and leave me a review on your favorite podcast player, be that Cast Box, Google Play, Apple Podcast or Spotify. Thanks for listening.

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