I don’t know who first used this phrase, but I think it is so valuable for the situation we now find ourselves in.
Absorb Chaos, Project Calm, Give Hope.
These are deeply unsettling times. Politics have polarized our communities. Divisions deepen. The institutions people once relied on now appear to be unreliable.
Your staff sense it. Your board knows it. Your volunteers and your community feel it too.
In this moment nonprofit leaders have an opportunity to reveal their strength. But it’s not easy.
Absorb the chaos. Don’t pretend things are fine when they aren’t. Take on the bad news, name it clearly, and resist the urge to sugarcoat. People trust leaders who acknowledge reality, warts and all.
Project calm. Not cheerfulness—calm. There’s a difference. Calm says: I see what’s happening, and we’re going to work through it together. Calm is contagious. And so is panic. Choose wisely.
Give hope. Real hope isn’t optimism untethered from facts. It’s making decisions and moving forward, rather than freezing up. It’s showing that purpose still matters, that action still counts, and that the mission endures. That brings hope.
Your strong culture can help carry you through these challenges. Now is the time to invest even more deeply in your organizational culture, to strengthen the bonds of trust and respect that hold your organization together.
Dark times call for strong, steady hands. Be the leader your people need.