Not all Managers are Leaders. Moreover, not all Leaders are savvy. In this post, Ruth Simmons offers a few nuggets for those who aspire to be savvy Leaders. Wisdom-building lessons aren’t always where you’d expect to find them.
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In life, Simmons feels that learning is ongoing and that lessons can be learned when you least expect them. A Leader must not assume that lessons are always going to come ‘neatly tied in a bow’.
“We are all faced with a series of great opportunities, brilliantly disguised as impossible situations”
Chuck Swindoll
“What you do has far greater impact than what you say.”
– Stephen Covey
“There are two kinds of people, those who do the work and those who take the credit. Try to be in the first group; there is less competition there.”
– Indira Gandhi
The job of a University President isn’t a simple one. Ruth J. Simmons has led 2 major universities (1995 – 2012) and is currently, after a five year break, leading a third university.
Read More Ruth J. Simmons: A Trailblazing University Leader (Part 2)
The job of a University President isn’t a simple one. For a large, private university the unique hats one must wear are particularly challenging. These leadership positions involves many skills, including:
Given these ‘hats’, to rise and successfully a single university or college is a uniquely-challenging thing for a person to accomplish. Ruth J. Simmons has led 2 universities (1995 – 2012) and is currently, after a five year break, leading a third.
“If we don’t change, we don’t grow.
If we don’t grow, we are not really living.
Growth demands a temporary surrender of security.”
Gail Sheehy
“I’m acting as if it is so, even though it ain’t so,
in order for it to be so”.
Delman Coates, Ph.D.
In order to grow, in order to (hopefully) succeed, a Non-profit Leader needs to believe – in their self and their organization’s goal-driven plans. Those who wholeheartedly BELIEVE tend to thrive. Those who, on the other hand, are fervent Doubters are likely destined to flounder, not flourish. It’s that simple folks! Even with a great Mission and rock-solid resources (financial & human), a lackluster Executive Director who isn’t a believer is not likely to be an effectual Achiever either.
“I’m acting as if it is so, even though it ain’t so, in order for it to be so”.
See Early, See More, See Further
Link: Collaborations and Partnerships: My Non-profit Journey (Sofia Crisp)
“Each new stage of a non-profit organization’s growth requires, I feel, a strategic re-channeling of the organization’s energy. Quite simply, the startup vision which allowed the non-profit to take root, and emerge as a viable venture, can lose its impact once the organization is up and running. I’ve seen too many accomplished, visionary leaders taken ‘out of the game’ by underestimating the virtue of collaboration as they grow. Much like Shakepeare’s Julius Caesar, they have a character flaw which holds them back. As the funds for nonprofits continue to decrease, the need for partnering and collaborating has become a necessity”.
“No man will make a great leader who wants to do it all himself,
or to get all the credit for doing it.”
—Andrew Carnegie
When Your Outcomes Well met with Donna Newton, we knew she was a leader in the Greensboro area’s Non-Profit community. While some who are called leaders are really glorified managers, Donna isn’t one of them! She’s a true leader. In this new Series, we’ll share the hardworking, humble woman’s thoughtful insights into a wide range of important issues facing most Professionals and Executive Directors in the Non-profit sector.
Read More Knowing Newton: The Non-profit Journey of Donna Newton
Better Outcomes through Best Practices (Non-Profit Leaders)