from the desk of Nia Wassink

I’m dubbing 2025 the year-of-no. This is the year I am going to be able to say no to the things that fill up my calendar, that don’t bring me joy, and that don’t further my goals. Friends, you may want to check in on me. You know this is not a skill that I’m adept at.

Having strategic priorities can work in the same way as my New Year’s resolution; helping your organization know what to say no and yes to.

You’re going to say, “but Nia, how can we possibly create a strategic plan is this moment? Everything feels so…tenuous and unpredictable!”

It is! And that is precisely why having a strong idea of your strategic priorities and vision into the future is so necessary. Without it, you are more likely to fall into that classic “bright-shiny-object” syndrome, where your organization chases after a new project, service, or initiative because it’s in front of you, not because of its alignment with where you ultimately want to be heading.

In speaking to a group of nonprofit leaders last week, we asked them about the trends they’re seeing in their services and needs in the community. Some clear themes arose:

• Increasing needs for basic services
• Inconsistent funding
• Demographic shifts in donors and volunteers
• Unknown policies coming from the new federal administration

Creating any kind of strategy or long-range plan that would address such huge unknowns can seem impossible. Instead, I’m going to encourage you to think about the infrastructure, values, or systems that would best help you adapt and respond. Some questions to consider:

• If we were to experience a significant funding loss or significant increase in need for our services, what existing systems would struggle the most? What can we do to improve them?
• When we look around the room at a typical meeting within our organization, who is missing? What voice do we need to amplify to help inform your work?
• In what ways are we equipped to advocate for or against policies that impact our work and the people with whom we work? How could we increase our capacity to do so?

As you start to answer these questions for your organization, you’re already beginning to put together a strategic framework to help increase your organization’s resilience and sustainability in unknown waters. It’s a great place to start with thinking strategically, planning for the future, and preparing for greater adaptability.