How To: Interview for a Non-Profit Organization

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Interviewing can be a scary process, especially in the non-profit sector. There is a wide variety of missions, dress codes, and work ethics to appeal to, and it’s hard to figure out how to appeal to a specific non-profit. While no two organizations are the same, there are some things you can do to prepare for an interview.

1. Know the mission. Connect with the mission.

Non-profits want to see that you get them. Interviewers what you to be able to explain to why you are excited about and love their mission. Make sure you share if you have any previous experience that can relate to the organization’s vision.

2. Ask interesting questions.

Research outside influences on the organization and find questions to ask that will show your understanding of the position and the non-profit is more than surface deep. (e.g. What are the short-term and long-term development goals? How will the recent funding cuts affect your budget?)

3. Dress professional.

There is a wide variety of dress codes among nonprofit organizations, but it is always better to dress professionally. The person interviewing you might be wearing a t-shirt and jeans, but you want to look like you are taking the position and the organization seriously.

4. Sell your passion and yourself.

You might be the most qualified person for the job, but if you don’t show passion for the position you might not get the job. Interviewers want to see that you believe in everything the organization is about. Show off how your skills and experiences make you the best person for the job, and how you will encompass their mission and vision throughout your work.

Get your resumes ready, and good luck!

 

Finishing Chapters

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Tardis Journal

From an early age I was terrible at finishing travel journals. From my first international trip to my last trip abroad I have always have been required, or have wanted to document my experiences through journal writing.

Unfortunately, none of these journals have ever been completed. Whether it’s the last month or couple of days before the trip ends, the pages stay blank.

I love new and exciting experiences, but I’ve always have hated the feeling after, the withdrawal. It’s more than just reverse culture shock, it’s the feeling that if I complete the journal, then the experience is complete, and I can never feel that same way again.

In the past, happiness has been an extremely difficult and complex emotion for me. The higher the high, the bigger the crash into a downward spiral. Not finishing those journals was a way of clinging onto the happiness I had found. I could pretend that nothing had changed, and I was still in the moment of happiness.

Through lots of self exploration and therapy, I’ve accepted that holding on to a moment doesn’t preserve your happiness, moving forward does. Change is happening all of the time, and grasping on to the past does nothing to prevent it, and makes me more miserable.

Different circumstances in the present and future don’t negate the happiness of the past. The fact that my brother and sister are moving across the country doesn’t change who we are to each other. The fact that disease is most likely going to prevent our annual trip doesn’t change my passion for my organization.

Sometimes I wish that world would stand still, but then I remember that its constant revolution and rotation has given me amazing opportunities and changes that I didn’t even know I needed.

I will probably be never good at finishing journals. There will probably always be that piece of me that wants to believe it’s not over and nothing is changed. But I now know that that my happiness lies in acknowledging the past, but moving forward towards the next big adventure.

How To: Write a Non-Profit Job Description

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Job descriptions are your primary tool for letting external job candidates know what you as an organization are looking for; you want to make sure that the descriptions of what you are asking for are clear, precise, and realistic. For a great job description you will need:

1. An overview of your organization’s mission and goals

A potential hire wants to know if their passion and ideology match up with your non-profit’s.

2. A realistic job title

3. The position’s reporting relationship(s) and key responsibilities

Many sources state that 3-5 key responsibilities will give the job candidate a clear picture of what they would be doing, without going into excessive detail.

4. A list of qualifications

Divide the qualifications into “must haves” and “nice to have”. What is absolutely essential, and what would be an added bonus?

5. Benefits and salary

Within your budget limitations, what is the best offer you can make to a candidate?

Check out the Bridespan Group for great examples of job descriptions for various non-profit job descriptions. Good luck!

 

Unnecessary Competition

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Every once in a while there is someone in the humanitarian sector who needs to puff our their feathers and claim that their organization and / or their methods are superior to everyone else’s, making them the best in their field. I experienced that behavior mostly in undergrad, but lately I have been experiencing this pissing contest indirectly and directly online and at various conferences.

My organization operates in 5 countries. Mine doesn’t require funding from corporations. Here are metrics that prove my work is more important than yours.

It’s one thing to be proud of our non-profits; I’m extremely proud of what my organization has accomplished. The trouble comes when we try to diminish other’s work as wrong or insignificant. In some countries it’s easy and an advantage to work with corporations and the government; in others, not so much. Water infrastructure does not negate education or health development or vice versa. There is no cause that trumps all of the others, and your organization isn’t better because of it.

Every organization is created, formed, and evolved from an infinite amount of historical, sociopolitical, and economical scenarios. Education programs that work in a small village in Ecuador might have no positive impact in a country-wide program in Pakistan. The way we operate in one the countries my non-profit works in is extremely unique, and I would not recommend functioning that way in other places. Do I wish that it could be different? Of course, but wishing doesn’t turn anything into an ideal situation. Yes we are taught and shown the ‘best practices’ of a specific sector, but a lot of the times those practices need to be adapted or completely thrown out the window in order to be successful.

It doesn’t make the work my non-profit any less valid, and having the ability to adhere to different tactics doesn’t make your work any more valid.

Can’t we all just get along, share our ideas, and be open to being wrong or adapting our programs?

Remember, we are all working towards making the world a better place, we can’t do that by stomping on each other.

How To: Find Board Members

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To become a non-profit, the IRS requires that your organization has some form of governing body. Most of the time, that governing body is a board of directors. The “Ten Basic Responsibilities of Nonprofit Boards” listed by BoardSource are:

  • Determine the organization’s mission and purposes
  • Select the executive staff through an appropriate process
  • Provide ongoing support and guidance for the executive; review his/her performance
  • Ensure effective organizational planning
  • Ensure adequate resources
  • Manage resources effectively (the buck stops with them, ultimately)
  • Determine and monitor the organization’s programs and services
  • Enhance the organization’s public image
  • Serve as a court of appeal for unresolved issues or complaints
  • Assess its own performance

The most important thing to remember when creating a board or looking for new members is to utilize your network. The three main categories of networks are people you know (1st circle), your first circle’s network (2nd circle), and people you don’t know who are passionate about similar causes (3rd circle).

1st Circle

  • Dedicated volunteers – Communicate the fact that you’re recruiting board members through your newsletter, word of mouth, emails and social media
  • Donors
  • Friends and Family
  • Organizational partners

2nd Circle

  • If you already have a board, ask your current board and staff for nominations or recommendations
  • Ask members in your 1st degree circle if they are aware of anyone who would be interested
  • Reach out to those beyond your nonprofit, like youth, or people in business or from other organizations
  • Make sure that communications going out to the first circle are easily shared with people outside of your direct network.

3rd Circle

  • Contact new organizations and volunteer centers that teach people how to be effective board members and then match them with nonprofits who need them
  • Use board or volunteer recruitment web sites like BoardNetUSA, BoardSource, and VolunteerMatch.

Happy searching, and good luck!

It’s Out of My Hands

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In the past week my organization has been dealt a blow. We usually travel to X in the Fall, but there has been a serious outbreak of disease in the area. Usually organizations like the WHO or Doctors Without Borders have a timeline for containment, but in this case, no timeline exists. The disease is extremely contagious, even when symptoms aren’t showing, and can be caught through bodily fluids, including sweat. There is no cure, and also tends to have a 50-60% death rate.

Unless it gets under control, it looks like it we would be unable to go. I know I have no control over the situation. There is nothing within my power that will improve the situation.

I feel helpless and frustrated.

Having to sit and wait and watch is making my skin itch; knowing that there is nothing I can do makes me physically ache. A part of me wants to say screw the consequences and go any way.

But what good am I if I get sick? Or if I die? Death isn’t a 100% guarantee, but it’s a high enough risk to not logically risk my life to ease my impulsive desires.

Valuing my life over my organization is actually a relatively new concept for me. I know that my life and my health trump going into dangerous areas, but there is still a tiny piece of me that hasn’t been convinced. What if I completely cover myself 24/7?  What if I don’t touch anyone? Isn’t it worth the risk?

Logically it’s a resounding no, but my emotions and feelings twist it into a lukewarm maybe. I don’t want to die a martyr. I don’t want to die period. But the idea of not going feels like a huge cop-out, even if the risks extremely outweigh the benefits of going.

I wish I could regale you with some grand revelation about self-worth vs. sacrifice, but the truth is I think I’ll always have a small part of me that would throw caution to the wind despite my best interests. I’m lucky that I’m surrounded by people who can knock sense into me and remind me that I know that certain risks don’t benefit me or my non-profit.

And who knows, maybe the situation will be contained, and it’ll be safe to go.

How To: Make Cold Calls

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There are many reasons to make cold calls, but this will focus on the need to introduce you and your organization before blindly emailing or mailing a partnership or funding proposal.

Before you make the call, make sure you have a plan of what you are going to say, and how you are going to say it. Whether you have a script in your head or written down, it’s important to include these things in your call:

1.  Show and Tell

Who are you as an organization. A well crafted and personalized elevator pitch would give who you are calling an understanding of what your organization does.

2. How does your organization connect with who you are calling?

Whether you are asking for money or a partnership, organizations and people want to know why you think that your non-profit and their organization would be a great match.

3. Have a reason to call

Whether it be strictly an introduction, a meeting or a chance to talk, you want to have a reason for the call that is outside of the proposal. Companies, organizations, and people in general like to have a ‘face with a name’, so offering a chance to meet up makes the proposal more personalized.

5. What do you specifically need? How can they provide that?

6. Ask to send them a proposal or materials.

People unfortunately can have short memories. They might think your organization is a great candidate for funding or partnership, but there are many distractions that can arise that will put your non-profit out of their mind. Sending materials will reinforce the conversation that you have had.

Good luck!

Trust Me, I Know What I’m Doing

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I have been job hunting for a while, but I’ve only recently gotten called in for interviews. I’ve noticed that while people are impressed that I co-founded my own non-profit, my organization is appearing to be a double-edged sword.

I always get asked if I am going to continue my work with my organization. Yes, I am very loyal to my non-profit, but if you are paying me, I know where my priorities lie. I’m not going to spend my time at your office working on my non-profit, and then have to explain why my work for the office isn’t finished. I rock at time management, and I am used to doing non-profit emails at weird hours of the night. I went to graduate school, had two-part time jobs, and managed my non-profit. It may get a little crazy, but I do know how to handle it.

Also, I’ve been asked multiple times about what writing skills I possess. With my non-profit I’ve had to learn how to write everything from proposals to tweets to brochures to donor letters. This is probably going to sound arrogant, but if there is a type of writing that an organization needs, I’ve probably written at least 20 versions of it.

My favorite question is how I would deal with working underneath a person since I’ve  been my own boss within my organization. First off, I’ve had other jobs, and I certainly wasn’t not the head of the companies. Also, between board members, constituents, and my co-founder, there is a lot of people I have to answer to. It would be great if I sat on a throne and listened to only my thoughts… but even when I’m my own boss I have to report to and be accountable to multiple people.

There is a plethora of reasons why I’m lucky to have created my organization. One of these reasons is how I’ve been able to learn so many skills that are applicable inside and out of the non-profit sector. I’ve written grants, built websites, managed shipping logistics, coordinated volunteers, and so much more. I’ve had to report to people, and have people report to me.

I know what I’m doing, and it’s frustrating that I’m having difficulty ‘selling’ my skills to other people.  I know it’s a part of life. but having to constantly convince others you’re qualified for a job you already do is beyond frustrating.

Hopefully, as I continue the interviewing process, I will become more equipped to ‘show off’  my skills in a way that is appealing to companies and other non-profits. I know I’m awesome, I know my organization is awesome, I just need to get other people to see what I can bring to the table.

How To: Create a Brochure

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Having a specific brochure geared to a specific audience can be a great way to market your organization to a target group of people.

Content

1. What questions would this audience have about your organization?

2. What parts of your programs would appeal to this group of people?

3. How would they benefit from your organization?

4. What are you asking this group of people to do? Participate? Volunteer? Donate?

5. What is the best way to get in contact with your organization?

Design

1. The less text the better

  • Cramming as much text in as possible is hard to read.

2. Use headers

  • The easier it is to scan, the better.

3. Pictures, pictures, and more pictures.

  • People like to see the people who are a part of and benefit from your organization.
  • Don’t just tell people what you do, show them.

Happy designing, and good luck!

 

Curbing My Enthusiasm

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I’ve written about not burning yourself out with causes outside of your own organization, but I’ve been finding that I’m needing to turn down the effort I’m putting into my own organization. This has happened to me before; when I first built my non-profit’s website, I think I went from its inception to launching the site (with a full 15 pages) in less than 60 hours. Our website was certainly quite basic at the time, but powering through to complete it in that short period of time burnt me out, and was completely unnecessary.

Over the past several years there have been moments where I have had to curb some of my manic tendencies; when I start a project or try to brainstorm a new idea for a program it’s hard for me to stop or concentrate on anything else. My brain becomes a non-profit hamster wheel that doesn’t stop, and usually picks up the pace when I should be asleep.

This past week we had a 24 fundraising campaign, and I was tempted to stay up through the whole 24 hours and push through surviving on caffeine and show tunes. It honestly made perfect sense to do this, until mentioning it out loud to my girlfriend. A part of me knew that it was a horrid idea and I would never stay awake for the full 24 hours even with copious amounts of caffeine. And if I did manage to stay awake, it wouldn’t have been pretty.

I understand these bouts of overdrive mode are not healthy, and are not necessarily conducive to completing something well and on time. It’s really hard to curb these tendencies. There’s still a tiny part of me that wants to believe that my organization’s success relies on the need to sacrifice my health. This thought process was formed through years of struggling with my mental health. I thought that the more I suffered, the better the output would be.

I didn’t stay up the straight 24 hours. Was the fundraiser as successful as I wanted it to be? No. Would it have been better if I stayed wake the whole time? No.

I enjoy putting myself into my organization, but I am still learning how to not go into extreme overdrive to the point where my non-profit is a great priority than my health. Where to draw the line is staring to become clearer, but it’s still difficult to not pass over it and keep running.

Honestly, a part of me still feels guilty if I don’t burn myself out completely on a project. If I don’t pour every ounce of myself into my organization how will it be a success? Would people question my passion and my loyalty?

I need to come to terms that, no matter what I do or how passionate I am or how much effort I put forth, someone is always going  to think I should have done something differently. I know what I put into my non-profit, and so do a lot of other people. Especially our constituents. So at the end of the day, if I put forth a solid effort and our constituents re happy with my work, then I have nothing to worry about.

I’m truly happy with the amount of work I put into my organization, and I need to give myself a break for not wanting to stay up for 24 hours straight on a fundraising binge.

I need to keep reminding myself that I am doing my best, and that I can still kick ass and take names within healthy boundaries.