Clay Myers-Bowman

Do you feel like this on Friday?

In a post this summer I warned executives who work at small nonprofits that they couldn’t do it all. This week, I’m issuing a second warning.

Executive directors and other nonprofit executive staff members are bombarded daily with new things. New donors. New reports. New blog posts. New requests from the boss. New board members. New people walking in the door. New this. New that. Am I right?

But of course, you also have to continue paying attention to (and completing or dealing with) the things that were new the day before, the week before, and the month before.

After a while you really can’t keep up. Especially if you are a one- or two-person shop.

Here’s what you have to start doing. You have to start consciously and deliberately NOT doing things. You. Can’t. Do. It. All. At least not in the context of all the things that get thrown at nonprofit executives.

So, question of the week: What are you going to stop doing to give yourself a better chance of successfully completing your top personal and organizational priorities? Make a list and share it in the comments below. Commit to it. Then follow through.

photo credit: jamelah via photo pin cc