If you were to walk away from your position today what will you leave behind you?
Lately I find myself telling people that in over 20 years of working and volunteering in the non-profit sector, I really only have one regret. I say regret not like I am kicking and beating myself up, but more like I have recognized that I need to make a change moving forward.
I regret not training or teaching enough people to know what I know and do what I do.
What if I just didn’t show up?
I picture myself in my different positions – volunteer and paid – and ask myself what would happen if tomorrow I just didn’t show up. Would I have benefited the organization because someone can come in behind me and pick up where I left off? Would they be able to access the same information I was using on a day to day basis? Will the organization maintain, or continue the systems and processes that I have created along the way?
You can ask anyone who knows me. I can pretty much do anything from selling in corporate America, to working on websites, to marketing a newspaper, speaking in front of large organizations and now co-founding a software company. I have done and can do pretty much anything. Yet, in the last 12 months, I have continued to reflect on this very question of “What will I leave behind?”.
Listen, I understand that it’s not a cookie cutter thing when it comes to how we work and everyone does their work differently, but there is something to be said about teaching others what you know. While it will help them grow, the person who garners the most benefit of any teaching is the one who is teaching the lesson and then ideally, the people we train are supposed to go and train someone else. This is real growth.
Value after I leave
No matter your position – the Executive Director for your district, Board Member, or administrative staff – this is an extremely important question to ask yourself. If you are reading this post right now, you are a get it down no matter the cost, no matter the circumstances kind of person – that’s why they hired you. You bring value to your district or organization.
The question then becomes, “Will what you are doing today continue to bring value long after you leave?”
You should begin to put processes and systems in place that will work even when you aren’t there. Because the truth is, whatever you are building now within your organization, has to be something that is sustainable after you leave. There has to be continuity of services in spite of your absence. To me, this is probably one of the best measurements in gauging our own value and effectiveness.
Hope this helps,
Emily