How Grantmakers Can Turn Uncertainty into Growth and Innovation

As grantmakers, we are deep in a new space of uncertainty. With the coming of a new year, a new presidential administration, and new potential impacts on all our communities, many of us are feeling a large range and mixture of emotions from fear to hope.

When we are in uncertainty, we need not only to pause to sit in the uncertainty but also face and discuss both the dysfunction and the hope of the unknown.

I wrote a book called, No More Status Quo: A Proven Framework to Change the Way We Change the World, which is essentially a field guide for how to navigate uncertainty, most efficiently and effectively. As part of my book launch, I hosted gatherings where I asked people to write on sticky notes their answers to two separate prompts:

"What dysfunctions in the social impact sector do you want to disappear", and

"What is emerging that gives you hope?"

What I love about this activity is that the rooms became instantly alive with conversations, many times between strangers connecting for the first time. There was listening, smiling, sharing, laughing, curiosity, and ultimately connection and communication.

Here are the top themes shared by your fellow changemakers. As you read them, consider what elements of your work feel dysfunctional and what elements give you hope? What learning would emerge from chats with your team, your grantees, and your community from asking these two prompts?

Uncertainty doesn't have to freeze us in the status quo. Your organizations have the power to transform the unknown into fuel for your learning and growth.

The Dysfunctions We Want to Disappear

These common threads highlight the systemic issues that hinder our ability in the social impact sector (what I include to be nonprofit, philanthropy, and local government) to innovate, adapt, and effectively meet the needs of communities, while also overburdening staff and reinforcing inefficient practices.

It is essential for us to name and spend time sitting with what is not working so that it can act as a foundation for our learning journey. These are the key elements of our work that changemakers want to leave behind.

1. Many organizations face resistance to change and rigid structures, rooted in a culture of adhering to traditional methods and relying on outdated processes, such as specific research methods, requests for proposals (RFPs), and typical-and at times wasteful-program design. This rigidity fosters resistance to innovation. Top-down decision-making and one-size-fits-all approaches fail to consider contextual nuances and the larger complexity of interdependent systems.
2. Another challenge is the over-dependence on data and quantitative metrics, which places undue emphasis on numbers while often neglecting qualitative insights, lived experience, diversity of perspectives, and real-world implications. Decisions are sometimes justified by data even when such justification is unnecessary or inappropriate, once again sidelining critical context.
3. Funding constraints and grant dependency further exacerbate these issues. There often can feel like an empathy and partnership chasm between funders and grantees. Due to limited budgets, internally crafted grant application and review processes, and expectation of outcomes as promised, it can feel stifling to creativity and innovation in program design. The nonprofit sector's reliance on grants creates a cycle of dependency, competition within ecosystems, and lack of skills in co-design, along with retention challenges that also suffocate innovation and impact.
4. The lack of inclusion and empowerment in decision-making compounds these challenges. Leaders frequently make decisions without input from those directly impacted, both inside and outside the organization, leading to a disconnect between organizations and the stakeholders they support. Additionally, diverse forms of expertise, particularly from staff and community members, are often undervalued.
5. Finally, staff burnout and unrealistic expectations remain persistent issues. Social impact staff are overworked and under-compensated, expected to implement ambitious programs with inadequate resources. They also bear the brunt of executing poorly planned ideas, further intensifying stress and burnout within already stretched teams.

A main element that I notice when I read these themes is that people feel stuck. And feeling stuck often makes people feel powerless, ignored, and exhausted. What also stands out to me is that people frequently reference context and innovation.

Often in our desire for and the expectation of simplicity, which really goes into overdrive when we are in uncertainty, we overlook the context of systems, structures, complexities, unanticipated and unintended consequences, agendas, and assumptions embedded in our work. We feel like we don't have time or support to think critically or to have these larger, more essential conversations. As a result, we often lower our exhausted heads and fall into existing patterns of how we apply for funding, review proposals, and design programs.

Many changemakers talked about how "this is the way we've always done it"-thinking stifles innovation. Innovation is a nebulous word with different meanings. When I think of innovation, I'm not thinking about something sexy, new, bright, and shiny, the "flavor of the month" type of change, but something that creates new value for people and organizations.

When we hold back from challenging how we operate, how we connect and listen, and how we design our programs, policies, and practices, we hold back people and progress.

What's Emerging That Gives Us Hope

Even with the dysfunctional elements creating harm in the sector, there are still many ideas that changemakers are thinking about, listening to, dreaming of, and inspired by that give them hope.

1. Innovation and progress are central to shaping a better future, driven by advances in technology and innovative solutions that promote efficiency.
2. Equity and inclusion are equally vital, with a focus on cultural responsiveness, shared power, and the development of vibrant, resourceful neighborhoods that ensure equitable access for all.
3. Human connection and collective effort are powerful forces for change, bringing together passionate, like-minded individuals and young, enthusiastic changemakers and abolitionists. These efforts are grounded in collaboration through listening, co-creation, and action taken with integrity.
4. Organizations are prioritizing mental health and well-being by fostering an environment that acknowledges trauma and mental health challenges without judgment. This includes improved treatment for mental illness and a greater emphasis on achieving peace of mind.
5. Amid challenges, hope and resilience remain steadfast. A vision of a world where people are valued over material goods inspires change, as do stories that challenge perceptions about "broken" and harmfully designed systems. Even in the face of adversity, big dreams and aspirations continue to thrive.

What I notice when I read these themes is that our hopeful future is rooted in care and respect. We want to honor the fullness of people, appreciate their diversity and lived experiences, support their traumas, and share equitable power. We want this care to permeate our communities, our organizations, and our sector.

So, What Can You Do?

How do we unite frustration and dysfunction with hope and possibility to generate transformative change? We think, feel, and work differently. We've named the challenges to be addressed, we've imagined a better future (and hopefully you will generate a list of your own), and now we need to use new skills to push through the obstacles that keep us tethered to the status quo.

Check out the webinar, Why We Get Stuck and How to Get Unstuck, to learn simple strategies to meet the complexities that underlie any challenge and opportunity for change.

Public link

Please use the above public link if you want to share this noodl on another website.