The work of change does not stop at strategy. Implement these key techniques to help your team effectively implement long-term initiatives.

Empathy is often difficult and can feel downright dangerous. But without it, you risk undercutting your own ideas and opportunities to win over others and grow.

Change can be daunting, costly, and energy-sapping. But it may also be necessary, or too beneficial to ignore. Here are three indicators that it's time to embrace change.

Feeling overwhelmed kills your productivity. It’s hard to know where to start or to focus once you do. Use these tips to get back on track - and regain your energy.

Successful strategies don’t remain static forever. Regularly monitoring outcomes will tell you if your plan is on the right track or if you need to shift course to reach your destination.

While the primary goal of strategic planning is to set your organization up for long-term success, you can leverage several the benefits from that process  immediately.

If you catch yourself thinking, “That was an overreaction,” invite a bit of doubt. Try not to take their words or actions personally, at least not until you’ve explored what else might be going on. 

Stress about uncertain outcomes can lead to feeling hopeless. Instead, give space for your emotions, recognize what you can control, and make a plan for what you cannot.

Having trusted, neutral advisers to turn to is essential for your mental health, for making effective decisions, and for keeping your passion intact.

Leverage events to communicate your organization’s identity, the scope of the need, the real work you do, the real people you serve, and opportunities to support your future direction.

Resilience may be a necessary crisis response – but it is not a sustainable state. Reset expectations so that enduring crises is an exception, not the norm.

When volunteers let commitments fall through the crack, it may be time to understand why that is - and create systems to motivate and hold them accountable.

Whether you’re developing strategy, setting goals for your team, or planning an ask or offer for funders, don’t let what you do crowd out why you do it. Begin with purpose.

Meetings can easily go off-topic even when you painstakingly prepare an agenda. Make a point to discuss what's most important, whether it's on the agenda or not.

It can be difficult to see transformation while it’s happening – especially when you’re the one leading the charge. Here are tips to stay motivated when you feel your resolve waning.

Don’t beat around the bush. If you need someone’s help to make your mission a success, ask - in a way that is clear, explicit, and shows that you value your relationship with them.

When you wrestle with a big challenge, asking the right question to reframe the issue can remove mental obstacles to your creativity and help you unlock new ideas.

It’s no fun feeling stuck. Thorny issues can totally consume your energy. Working with an independent guide can help you get unstuck - quickly - so you can get back to focusing on your mission.

Having a realistic first move to get from where you are to where you’d like to be is the final step in getting unstuck. Finding your way is much easier with these three techniques.

After getting clear on what's at the heart of your challenges, get unstuck by envisioning a future in which those circumstances have changed for the better.