The Overlooked Factor in Nonprofit Innovation

In conversations about nonprofit innovation and impact, there’s a lot of talk about the importance of speed and scale.

But what rarely gets mentioned?

Stamina.

Specifically, executive stamina.

And that’s a problem—because stamina has an outsized impact on whether new ideas and innovations actually become new ways of working within organizations.

Why Stamina Matters

Executives in the nonprofit sector are under constant pressure from boards, donors, funders, communities, and even their own team members to deliver new, better, more innovative solutions—and to deliver bigger impact—at an increasingly faster pace.

But the truth about lasting impact and real change is that they don’t come from rushing. They come from sustained focus over time.

That’s true in society.
That’s true in our personal lives.
And it’s true in our organizations as well.

Change isn’t a brilliant idea, a project plan, or a checklist.

It’s the process of becoming something new.

And that process takes practice and time.

What Research Tells Us

Across 20+ years of organizational change research, one consistent finding has stood out as the #1 factor in successful change:

➡️ Visible and engaged senior leadership throughout the entire process of the change initiative.

This doesn’t mean you can’t delegate.

But it does mean you can’t disappear—or keep jumping from “new” to “next”—and expect lasting impact to take hold.

The Real Leadership Challenge

So, what would it take for you to stick with a big change you’re leading for the next 12 to 36 months?

And what practical steps can you take to cultivate and protect your stamina, so you can remain visible and engaged for the long haul?

Those are the questions we’ll be exploring in our August issue of Choose One Thing, our monthly newsletter.

Stay Connected

If you want to dig deeper into how to protect your stamina and sustain meaningful change, subscribe today so you don’t miss it.

I’m Veronica LaFemina. I help CEOs and Department Heads at established nonprofits create strategic clarity and learn to lead change well.

👉 I’d love to hear your perspective on this. You can join the conversation on LinkedIn here.

Photo by Braden Collum on Unsplash