In “The View From Dave’s Barstool,” Principal and Managing Director, Dave Paule, discusses…well…whatever happens to be on his mind.

Why the barstool? Barstools can certainly be social. They’re frequently the center point of great conversation. There is no pretension, no corner office or head-of-table amongst a row of barstools. So, every month, Dave invites you to pull up a barstool and explore a topic he’s found particularly important (or amusing) recently. Because some leadership lessons show up in boardrooms. Others show up at the bar.

Dave’s Thoughts This Month: You Can’t White-Knuckle A Career Forever

Ahhh summer. The weather is hot, everyone’s summer calendar is full, and somewhere right now a nonprofit executive is convincing themselves that things will slow down next month. (Spoiler – They won’t. At least, not on their own.) Join me at the swim-up bar and let’s have a chat about it.

During my corporate career, one strategy for advancement was becoming the Golden Boy or Girl: the person willing to tackle the challenges no one else wanted. It worked, too. I spent another twenty years recovering from it.

Nonprofits have their own version. We call that person the Hero.

One of the most dangerous myths in mission-driven work is the belief that caring enough can compensate for capacity. Most of us have met the hero.

  • The executive director who never takes vacation.
  • The development officer who works every event.
  • The board chair who answers every email, joins every committee, and somehow still shows up first to every meeting.

Organizations love heroes. They solve problems, fill gaps, manage whitespace and save the day…For a while.

The trouble is that heroism scales poorly. Every time the hero takes on one more responsibility, the organization learns a lesson. Not that the workload is unsustainable. Not that more resources are needed. Not that priorities need to be clarified. The organization learns that the hero will handle it. So another responsibility gets added…Then another…

Over time, dedication becomes an expectation. Extraordinary effort becomes the norm. The hero becomes the system.

That arrangement works right up until it doesn’t. Burnout rarely arrives with a dramatic announcement. It shows up in smaller ways. Patience gets shorter. Creativity gets harder. Decisions take longer. Things that once felt meaningful start feeling heavy. The person who used to solve every problem begins spending most of their energy simply keeping up.

We’ve seen this happen during capital campaigns, strategic planning efforts, leadership transitions, and periods of rapid growth. Everyone focuses on the initiative while missing the real issue. The organization has been borrowing energy from the future, sometimes for years. Eventually the bill comes due.

The irony is that the people most vulnerable to burnout are often the people most committed to the mission. They care deeply. They feel responsible. They genuinely want the organization to succeed. Those qualities make them valuable leaders. They also make them vulnerable ones.

Sustainable leadership requires something many nonprofit professionals find uncomfortable: boundaries. Not because the mission doesn’t matter. Because it does. The goal is not to care less. The goal is to create enough space that caring remains possible year after year.

A healthy organization does not depend on extraordinary sacrifice from a handful of people. It builds systems, distributes responsibility, and creates expectations that human beings can actually sustain.

I realize this sounds less inspiring than heroism. It is also far more effective. After all, the objective isn’t to survive this month, this campaign, or this fiscal year. The objective is to build a career, an organization, and a mission that can still thrive ten years from now.

And nobody gets there by white-knuckling it forever.

For more insight on the topic of burnout, you may want to read our latest blog, “Burn Is A Fundraising Risk“, where we explore why leadership bandwidth, board engagement, and staff sustainability are often the hidden factors that determine campaign success. 

This Month’s Drink: The Paloma

This month we’re pouring a Paloma. Simple. Refreshing. A little tart, a little salty, and best enjoyed slowly. The Paloma isn’t trying to prove anything. It doesn’t overwhelm you. It doesn’t demand your attention. It just does its job exceptionally well.

There’s probably a lesson in that.

The best leaders, and the healthiest organizations, aren’t the ones operating at maximum capacity every day. They’re the ones built to last.

Recipe:

  • 2 oz tequila
  • ½ oz fresh lime juice
  • Grapefruit soda
  • Pinch of salt
  • Lime wedge

Build over ice in a tall glass and top with grapefruit soda.