The Executive Director's Advisory Council

An executive director’s job is kind of lonely.  

As the key person in charge of the organization, where do you turn when you need a little advice? You can’t lean on those folks you supervise. No matter how well you get along, that would put them in an awkward position and might set a precedent you’ll regret later.  

You can’t lean on your board of directors. No matter how well you get along, the board is your boss and there’s a risk they will start questioning if you are the right person for the job when you start asking them for advice. 

Sure, you can call your mom or text your BFF, but do they really understand your job well enough to help? 

A peer group can be a great support but that can take years to find and longer to build relationships. 

So, what do you do while you are working hard but just need a little bit of direction? Don’t despair. Create your own, ehm, advisory council. ** 

Here's how it works. 

Make a grid with 4 columns. At the top of each column write the following words: 

1. People  
2. Colleagues  
3. Fictional Characters 
4. Not People 

Now, let’s have a little fun! 

Under the People column, list 4-5 people from history or present day whose advice you would really value if you had access to it. Of course, you don’t really know them but try to think of people who it would be cool to know.  

Here are a couple on my list. Yes, I do indeed have an advisory council.  

Martha Stewart. Not just the queen of fancy cakes and free-range eggs, Ms. Stewart is well known as a shrewd and hyper critical businesswoman having built a massive empire. I think of 1999, when her business went public. The IPO opened at something like $18 and closed at $35+. That kind of attraction has nothing to do with Italian merengue buttercream. I picked her for that tough as nails business attitude. I imagine her grilling me on my decisions and really helping me focus on what needs to be done.  

I also picked writer and poet Maya Angelou. Couldn’t be more different from Martha. Her words have always struck me as so calm, thoughtful, and wise. What a better advisor when I'm feeling down and second-guessing all my decisions. In fact, I often think of Maya when I need to calm down in a hot-headed moment.  

OK, by now you’ve realized this isn’t a real life advisory group. But stick with me, and you’ll create a collection of diverse viewpoints that you can use to work through any problem.

Let's keep going. 

Under the Colleagues column, select 4-5 people with both a very different point of view than your own, and some with a blind allegiance to support anything you do. My council has ‘that guy’, you know, the jerk from a previous job who made my life a living hell. His never-ending questions and negativity help me dream up many possible nay-sayer questions before a big presentation, and then I can plan out my answers, well in advance.  

Having a colleague who supports you no matter how wrong you get, is another interesting twist to the advisory council. I make mistakes and a good friend should be willing to let me know it, but they might not. So, I made sure to include a work buddy on my colleague list so that I can question the folks who are questioning me. Clear?

Fictional Characters are not dissimilar from the previous two columns, but it does let you flesh out your council with a few more interesting members. Selections for 4-5 fictional characters can come from novels, movies, books, etc. What are your favourite fiction books to read at the beach, or to take your mind off work? I love a good mystery and my number one fictional character choice is Mma Ramotswe from The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency books. She's kind, she’s incredibly smart, and she sees the bigger picture to solve the problem. I wouldn’t have an advisory council without her! Actually, she chairs my council meetings. 😉  

Finally, Not People. Yeah, I know, not very specific. Think of 4-5 things you like to do, or don’t like to do. It can be spending time in nature, baking, painting, or playing sports. Sometimes the art of being in the moment during an activity can clear your head and help you work out a problem just as easily as advice.  

I chose gardening for my advisory council. Gardening is my go-to after a hard day. It helps me clear my head and always leaves me feeling like I worked out the stress. I also chose team sports – and nope, I don’t play sports. Actually, I hate sports (sorry not sorry). I hated it when I was a kid, I have no skills, and it makes me stressed to have a bunch of talented athletes judging me. Having team sports on my advisory council keeps me realistic.  

OK, so how do you put it all together?  

Think of it like a real meeting. You've got a problem you need to work out. You send out an email to the group for the time and date of the next meeting. Everyone arrives and the focus question, or problem, is written up on the white board. Or, in reality, at the top of your note pad. You pour a cup of coffee (or bush tea) and get to work. Each member of the advisory council gets a turn answering the question. You take notes.  

Jerk guy is going to be, well, a jerk. Note all his cranky comments and then write the answers to address his objections. It will help you focus. 

Martha might think your concept is sound but point out some holes in your logic that you can fix.  

Maya will guide you to trust your own instincts, after all, you got the job. She might also stop you from saying something you’ll regret later.  

Mma Ramotswe will keep the meeting on track, not letting council members talk out of turn or for too long. She’ll provide a point of view that you hadn’t thought of before, that might just turn the whole problem into a simple fix.  

Gardening will prune back all the underbrush until the solution begins to emerge.  

Team sports, well, you get the picture.  

Yes, this is a fanciful way of working out a problem on your own. But its critical to the success of an executive director that you learn to rely on your own judgement as you lead your organization. An advisory council is one way to practice. 

Thanks for reading!

-Christie

**Full disclosure, the advisory council isn’t a concept I invented. I read about it years ago and adapted it for my own use. Before releasing this blog post, I scoured the internet and my library reading list, but I simply couldn’t find the source for the concept. I don’t think it was called an advisory council, that’s just what I call it. I remember there were more columns, but I downsized it to the 4 that worked best for me. I'm all about giving credit for the original idea. If you know of the source, please let me know and I will gladly revise my post to recognize the original author.

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Hi, I'm Christie Saas, former board member, current Executive Director, and non-profit volunteer. I remember well, those early years when I lacked the training, the confidence, and the work-life balance to focus on becoming the best non-profit leader I could be.

Fast-forward past many bumps in the road, lessons learned, and you’ll find me still in the trenches, but a little wiser, a little calmer, and a whole lot happier. I love my work and I want to help you love yours too.

I created ChristieSaas.com to give you tools, tips, and templates to remove the mystery of learning to run a small non-profit. If you’re a brand-new non-profit leader, or a little more seasoned, someone who’s looking to make a meaningful contribution and still have time for a full life away from the job, you’re in the right place.

© Christie Saas 2019 All Rights Reserved

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