Open Questions: The Ross Collective Blog

Those of us who work closely with nonprofit boards or serve on boards know that a high percentage of boards are not working. And the challenges in terms of the stresses that boards are experiencing (racial injustice, inequities, workplace burnout, uncertainty in the larger economic environment) have increased over the past few years.  

We create belonging when we understand the obstacles or barriers to belonging.

Blowing out the candles with the wish that we each thrive.

People have to want change in order to move towards it.

How do we build a world in which all people can thrive?

Have you embarked on these six steps?

We keep learning from each other and helping each other make #GoodTrouble and do better work.

If you are a leader making change, you should also be thinking about how to make connections between individual stories and larger systems, and what you and your organization are seeking to shift.  

As humans, we are wired for comparison…and also collaboration.

The Ross Collective creates spaces that support leaders to do things that go beyond their comfort zone.

Small experiments create little successes that we can build on.

How are you going beyond the edge of your comfort zone?

For better meetings, ask these questions beforehand.

What should boards do once they recognize that their practices and cultures are out-of-sync with new realities?

Finding ways to "Yes and..." this moment.

Guiding principles for leading as a white facilitator

If you experience abundance and privilege, how are you going to use it to move our world towards justice?

When we see that we have enough, we’re motivated to share power and resources.

Wishing you a gratitude-filled and heartfelt Thanksgiving.

If we agree that it is important to talk about race and equity, what are some first steps to begin to do this?

This post marks the creation of 50 blog posts! If you are reading this – and you may have started reading this week or been with us since the beginning – I want to express my gratitude and thank you for taking a few minutes out of your day to read along. It is gratifying to hear from readers and get your responses to these posts.

We move towards inclusion, belonging and change inside our families, teams and organizations when we choose the path of discomfort and growth.

Clarity of vision can give each of us the energy to work towards equity.

Going forward, one of the best ways that I can honor and affirm the students, colleagues, and participants in the conversations I lead is to be open, direct, and courageous in talking about race.

Leadership is using our power to move the world towards justice.

At its core, noticing is to see and affirm that every person of every race, gender, ability and background deserves to live a life of safety, prosperity, opportunity, and health – and we don’t have that yet.

Those of us who work closely with nonprofit boards or serve on boards know that a high percentage of boards are not working. And the challenges in terms of the stresses that boards are experiencing (racial injustice, inequities, workplace burnout, uncertainty in the larger economic environment) have increased over the past few years.  

We create belonging when we understand the obstacles or barriers to belonging.

How to go forward when needs outpace funding

How do we build a world in which all people can thrive?

Most of us want to understand how we work together and how we can improve our shared work.

To create inclusive, impactful board meetings, you should include those formal structures such as Meeting Agreements. They set the board’s work in the right direction.

How long DOES it take to design one board meeting?

Have you embarked on these six steps?

When people ask me the value of hiring a retreat facilitator, I think back to Mark…

The first step to strategic planning

What should boards do once they recognize that their practices and cultures are out-of-sync with new realities?

Seven principles that The Ross Collective uses to design and lead impactful strategic planning retreats

We’re at a moment of hard choices with no clear answers.

When I design any meeting or presentation, a first question is, “What is in the room right now?”