Being a Lightning Rod

Sometimes the electrical charge gets too strong and lightning strikes. This morning a client of ours got very angry with staff and starting screaming and yelling. With a flurry of f-bombs and a piece of overturned furniture the young man exited through the front doors.

Unfortunately, staff are sometimes the closest ones (in terms of physical distance as well as strength of relationship) to a client and you become the lightning rod. Many times we don't know what the trigger is. Research and experience show that people will sometimes lash out when they are trying to change their worldview and their response to those around them. Maybe they are unhappy with their own situation and aren't ready to think of solutions.

Our staff members responded appropriately by remaining calm with the client around and then dealt with the emotions after he left. It is important to remember that you are a lightning rod at that time. It is hard not to, but essential, to not take the verbal assault personally. The message has to be portrayed to the client that the outburst was inappropriate, the anger understandable and that other ways to deal with it are available.

We hope that lightning doesn't strike the same place twice, but also hope that the outburst is a sign that somethimg is changing for this young man.

An Insider Investment Tip

Are you interested in a good investment tip? A tip from an insider? Investing in social impact makes a big difference in our community. It is less risky than the stock market and has tangible benefits.

My Board of Directors might gasp in horror at my next statement. "Don't, yes I said don't, donate to the Camrose Open Door to meet our organizational need." You are probably not interested in what our need as an organization is. However, I think you are very interested in investing in your community to make it a better place.

Investing in youth makes sense. Employment and education are good investments that have long term benefits to the people involved and the community as a whole. An average of 75% of our Cafe Connections participants are employed and/or in school 3 months after completing our program.  60+% of the youth who have accessed our supportive housing are living in a better situation 3 months after leaving our housing than they were when they came to us. These youth are now paying taxes, purchasing items and using fewer social services.

As we approach the holiday season please consider making an investment. Please do invest in the Open Door to provide youth with the best opportunitites to succeed. Investing in our youth makes good sense for the community.

Something you never want to get good at

A key role of an Executive Director is to make decisions based on what is best for the organization (clients, staff, etc.) that he/she represents. Most of the time, at least in my experience, these decisions have been choices between something good and something better. Unfortunately, that is not always the case.

Sometimes the choice is between bad and worse. These decisions are not to be made lightly as they impact people's lives. Maybe that knot in the pit of my stomach is a good sign. It indicates that this isn't something I enjoy doing.

Leadership means making decisions based on the best information that you can get. In most cases, inaction only makes the situation worse.

I read somewhere that making these difficult decisions/choices are like funerals. You hope you never get too good at them.