tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-82858301873405997742024-03-13T14:32:23.580-04:00Gro(w)th BlogGro(w)th Coaches, LLC, provides great coaching to non-profit organizations and the people who love them--volunteer leaders, staff, donors, and clients!Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger132125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-16888357344249849122012-02-20T16:23:00.014-05:002012-02-29T11:15:25.509-05:00Students Leading the WayOne of the greatest challenges for young people must be to step fully into managing their own lives and taking responsibility for the things that directly affect them. It was for me. It is for my son. And I recall as a high school student government leader (many years ago!), my friends and I did exactly that. We lobbied school administrators, collaborated with school district trustees, and Gary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-29418961222727943942012-01-13T15:02:00.004-05:002012-01-13T15:25:50.463-05:00It's What You Do!Lead. Manage. Facilitate. Strategize. Listen. Solicit. Measure. Work. Participate. Share. Talk. Challenge. Direct. Shape. Govern. Grow. Learn. Process. Evaluate. Mentor. Coach. Counsel. Recruit. Plan. Schedule. Write. Send. Create. Implement. Terminate. Cultivate. Thank. Visit. Draft. Clean. Nurture. Record. Update. Balance. Protect. Gary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-30781065747379339762012-01-02T13:23:00.011-05:002012-01-02T14:00:22.827-05:00What Lingers In the SpaceIt's been a rough autumn. And winter. I got pneumonia and have been really sick for some time now. What an interruption to my life. Lucky for me, I was able to identify the moment of infection...and even "Patient Zero." One shared retreat followed by four people out with the plague. Nasty!Ever since this retreat I have been thinking about germs. The things we cannot see or hear or smell Gary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-90597458170675248122011-10-17T11:58:00.001-04:002011-10-17T11:59:20.519-04:00A Great Read!A terrific article, shared from www.ejewishphilanthropy.com that is well worth a read followed by a hearty a conversation with your board and staff.Ready...set...go!Nonprofit Leadership Needed October 17, 2011 by Todd Cohen Nonprofits need to lead, and quickly. At home and abroad, we face serious threats from multiple, cascading crisesGary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-42457220727994761502011-07-07T10:25:00.007-04:002011-07-11T08:36:47.267-04:00A Letter to People Who VolunteerDear Volunteer,Our organization thrives because of your hard work and commitment to our shared vision. You give your talents and expertise freely which enables us to thrive, provide valuable services, and save money (you also are core to our staying in legal compliance as a non-profit, but that sounds pretty cold...but thanks!). We couldn't do what we do without you. Really!Working with Gary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-48419515271173908642011-06-24T13:02:00.008-04:002011-06-24T14:23:58.852-04:00It's (not) the Economy, Stupid!There is a common theme of blame and dis-empowerment in our culture today--"It's the economy"--that we use to let ourselves off the hook for failing to deliver on our goals. Blame the economy! I get that the economy is tough...really tough for many...and yet, there is a tendency to overstate the importance of the economy weighing us down so we do not have to address the truth of what might Gary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-69477369741409995252011-02-12T08:40:00.006-05:002011-02-12T10:46:11.451-05:00Play to Win!Board of Directors, JCC of the North Shore, February 9, 2011About one year ago, it was reported in my community that the 100 year old Jewish Community Center was going out of business. Membership--the life-blood of the organization--was plummeting, philanthropy was down, the economy was killing the organization, the facility was in growing disrepair and lacked modernity, and a new YMCA in the Gary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-81809693246807502392011-01-12T09:29:00.008-05:002011-01-12T17:02:19.117-05:00Systems and Values and Thoughts (oh my!)A post inspired by the blizzard out my window!I am intrigued by how challenged everyone is (it seems!) to get along, come together, make it work. When did the challenge become how challenging it is to be/work together and not the collective overcoming or resolution to the issue--the challenge--at hand? When did families begin to look like "casts" of a reality TV show and when did work groups Gary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-78058212619118768512011-01-01T08:56:00.006-05:002011-01-01T10:03:40.086-05:00Shame in the New YearI remember reading once how "to do" lists should be renamed "shame" lists. All we really do is commit what we think we will do to paper, don't do any of it (often because the list is so long and overwhelming), and then we go do some shaming activity to make ourselves feel better for failing to accomplish anything on the list! Sound familiar?At no time is this cycle more prevalent than at the Gary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-4803738406847852772010-12-17T07:53:00.009-05:002010-12-18T08:09:06.151-05:00A Week In ReviewEnd of the week thoughts and queries on several themes as informed by my week:If you have a job in this horrific economy, what are you doing to keep it? What about the job--or having the job--makes you grateful? What about your employment status makes you complacent?If you are looking for work, what are you doing that truly sets you apart from ordinary, or in many cases, sets you apart from Gary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-6482964471053444302010-12-02T09:40:00.023-05:002010-12-02T14:59:35.409-05:00We Can Do Better This fundraising campaign called BuyLife, for the organization calling itself "Keep a Child Alive," leaves me cold! Everything about it strategically and tactically is just wrong. Wrong! It's not clever, edgy, ironic. It's just bad.A simple breakdown of the campaign: A wide range of celebrity-type people will cease all fan contact (being promoted as a "sacrifice") through their social Gary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-6718574050005104082010-11-04T16:50:00.012-04:002010-11-08T14:57:46.981-05:00Sacred CowsI have been to India twice. Once as a college student studying abroad and once for a summer with my then ten-year-old son to retrace my steps thirty years earlier. I love India for many simple and many more complex reasons. It is a country that has been home to me and where I have roots.One of the most life-changing experiences I had as a college student in rural India was living with a cow Gary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-66689418351225186622010-10-07T15:43:00.006-04:002010-10-22T08:38:44.098-04:00Fire away!A local discount store had this content on the cover of its recent sales circular in the newspaper:"I appreciate complaints.I really would like to know what you think of our stores...how you've been treated, the quality of our merchandise, the fairness of our prices, the good deals you've scored, the times you've been disappointed...for without your feedback, we can't make things right...for you Gary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-51490323871996916542010-09-28T08:05:00.005-04:002010-09-28T09:17:44.194-04:00SimplifyIt doesn't have to be complicated! Really...really!Often the resolutions to our challenges are right in front of us. It would appear--especially for those of us affiliated with the work of non-profit organizations--that it is our belief the resolutions, in order to be effective, have to be more complex, detailed, tested, expensive, debated, focus-group approved, consensus made, stakeholder Gary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-3967773526819105642010-09-15T15:44:00.002-04:002010-09-15T15:53:29.200-04:00Word for the DayWhat are you grateful for? What does gratitude feel like for you? For me, gratitude is more than offering "thank you"...yet that is a start. What does an expression of gratitude look like to you? What gets in the way of offering gratitude? Or acknowledging gratitude? Or receiving gratitude? Think of a gratitude that you wish to offer. Got it?Now go do it!Gary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-16071493316566971962010-09-06T08:19:00.012-04:002010-09-06T09:33:20.504-04:00DiscoveryI am my family's historian. It is a self-appointed position that I love. I am the keeper of the family tree database, a process that began over 35 years ago on scraps of paper and index cards and is now tracked on an elaborate database. I scan old photos that are then appended to individual records. I get mysterious documents and photos translated from their original languages (usually Gary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-28028571234063055712010-08-24T12:03:00.009-04:002010-09-06T08:19:48.382-04:00The Pursuit of JoyI have a new acquaintance (quickly becoming a friend) who is a talented, educated, experienced, skilled professional in her non-profit field. She is fantastic. And she has been stuck in a rut professionally. I know she is a success--meets her goals, contributes positively to the cause and culture, leads--but she would describe her existence as joy-less. Something is missing.It took some time.Gary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-15501668939719674192010-08-17T10:27:00.010-04:002010-08-17T11:14:40.863-04:00Tough Times<!--[if !mso]> v\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} o\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} w\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} .shape {behavior:url(#default#VML);} <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]> Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4Gary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-58468697924810401852010-08-06T08:48:00.007-04:002010-08-06T09:09:26.740-04:00Make It UpI just returned from a month of travel and have now completed many of the tasks that lingered in my absence. A terrifically satisfying accomplishment: Cleaning and organizing my office! In the stacks of paper waiting to be filed, I found a paperclip holding three random notes. I do not recall the origins of either scrap or even why the content was important at the time.Maybe there is some Gary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-6514518778303558762010-05-28T09:29:00.009-04:002010-06-15T08:41:17.693-04:00ConnectivityI have a theory. More and faster and instant communication portals and devices do not make us better communicators. We just have more and faster communication portals and devices.The origins of my theory this morning: I have a contractor completing a year-long project at my home who is getting quite lazy and we are literally 6 hours from completing the job. The last few months have been Gary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-28322469591661209422010-05-20T07:09:00.008-04:002010-05-20T07:49:08.502-04:00Love, SisterSitting in the boat with my son, comfortably in the driveway!One year ago I was given a boat for my birthday by my sister. So much for gift cards! Notice the name of the boat?It is a sweet 18 foot power boat that will be moored right in front of my home for the summer season. In the ocean...with daily tides...and Nor'easter storms...and hidden rocks that reveal themselves when the tides go Gary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-74367359078135936962010-05-06T11:41:00.007-04:002010-05-06T11:48:07.305-04:00BlissIn a recent coaching session a client wondered to herself out loud: "What would I leave this state of bliss for?" Oh, the places that question can take you. What would you leave your current state of being for? What's there that you don't have/feel/see/want here? What do you know about your personal bliss? What matters to you about it? If not bliss, what?Have a look!Gary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-22136462169229439522010-05-03T10:44:00.005-04:002010-05-06T11:48:34.109-04:00WaterMy community north of Boston has been included in the emergency restricted water use program since Saturday evening. The report is that the main water pipe supplying fresh water to 2 million people in over 700,000 homes broke. The flow to the broken pipe was stopped and now untreated water from a different reservoir is flowing to the affected homes and businesses. Since the water is untreated,Gary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-40613616798826768792010-04-05T07:58:00.006-04:002010-04-30T09:19:56.604-04:00Class of 2010I am very aware of the young people in my life who are graduating from high school, graduating from college, or taking big steps in the "what next" of their lives in the next few months. Lots of 'em! What an awesome experience to witness these young talents, tapping into their skills and resources, to make it in their worlds.Every day there appears to be a fierce determination to begin the restGary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285830187340599774.post-20793204394843584602010-03-01T16:28:00.007-05:002010-03-01T17:19:53.583-05:00A Tale of Two SaturdaysOn Saturday, February 20, one of my clients raised a lot of money for her non-profit organization. So get this--in this crippled economy and after key internal leadership transitions she capably managed a large event team that raised over $625,000 (over 65% increase over the year before) and reduced the expenses by over 20% (total expenses for this event were 28%!) all the while making dear Gary Grothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14914868248624053303noreply@blogger.com