Nonprofit Leadership Isn’t Perfect, and That’s the Point

Article Highlights:

• Consider How Some of the Most Notable Thought Leaders Define Leadership
• Leadership in an ‘Exponentially Complex’ World

I can’t think of a term more widely used in the professional world than “leadership.” Throughout my life, from teenage years to now, my career has been filled with leadership training programs: Teen leadership, student leadership, emerging leadership, and executive leadership. Then, of course, there are leadership books, leadership podcasts, leadership gurus, and endless leadership quotes.

As a society, particularly in the Western world, we are obsessed with leadership. This obsession stems from deep cultural, historical, and economic foundations that value individualism, meritocracy, and innovation. We’ve cultivated a culture that prizes personal achievement, the honing of leadership traits, and the belief that leadership is the key driver of both organizational and societal success.

Consider How Some of the Most Notable Thought Leaders Define Leadership

Peter Drucker describes it as “the lifting of a man’s vision to higher sights, the raising of a man’s performance to a higher standard, the building of a man’s personality beyond its normal limitations.” It’s an idyllic view of leadership.

Warren Bennis, a pioneer in the study of contemporary leadership, shares a similarly ambitious definition, calling it “the capacity to translate vision into reality.”

Brian Tracy, who has written over 80 books on the subject, offers a practical take, stating that “leadership is the ability to get extraordinary achievement from ordinary people.”

I appreciate these definitions, but what if leadership is really about making the best of less-than-ideal situations? It may sound less grand — perhaps even uninspiring — but to me, it captures the reality of the world we live in. It also provides a more honest and attainable foundation.

Leadership in an ‘Exponentially Complex’ World

There’s a well-documented idea that has emerged in recent years: We are living in a world that is becoming exponentially complex. Not just increasingly complex — exponentially so. This means we can barely imagine what the future might hold.

We see this in the explosion of data — now reaching levels once unimaginable — and in the rapid advancements in technology, particularly AI and machine learning, that are reshaping industries at lightning speed.

Globalization has brought economies and cultures closer together, but it has also heightened geopolitical instability, exposing businesses to political uncertainty and unpredictable international relations.

At the same time, markets are volatile, and consumer expectations are shifting constantly. Today’s consumers demand instant gratification and personalized experiences, adding layers of complexity to decision-making.

Meanwhile, resource scarcity, the rise of disruptive business models, and shorter product cycles require continuous innovation. Leaders now face the challenge of balancing immediate needs with long-term strategies in a world where change is relentless.

To put it in perspective, consider this: Every two years, the amount of data in the world doubles. That means that, despite the long history of human civilization, 90% of the data in existence today was created in just the past two years. It’s no wonder leadership feels more complicated than ever.

I was recently catching up with a friend who runs a small nonprofit organization. She shared with me the many challenges she faces on a daily basis: A lack of resources and limited access to additional funding, a suboptimal team due to a constrained talent pool in an unideal labor market, and an abundance of great ideas but a shortage of time, knowledge, and skills to execute them.

After she finished, I shared my own organizational struggles. Once we were both done, she smiled and said, “But that’s leadership!” Indeed, that’s leadership.

In an exponentially complex world, being a leader means embracing ambiguity and constant change. Leaders today must navigate a landscape where challenges evolve rapidly and unpredictably. Leadership is no longer about having all the answers or even a perfect vision; it’s about guiding teams through uncertainty and empowering others to respond creatively to the unknown.

In this complexity, a leader’s role becomes that of a connector — uniting people, ideas, and resources toward shared goals amidst the chaos.

Moreover, leaders in this environment must prioritize learning and unlearning. As technology and markets shift, effective leadership requires staying curious and open, encouraging continuous development, and recognizing that the skills needed today may not be sufficient tomorrow.

The modern leader’s strength lies not in controlling outcomes, but in guiding teams to collaboratively create solutions to problems we can’t yet foresee. Leadership becomes less about direction and more about cultivating adaptability.

One of my favorite quotes is from philosopher Sam Keen, who speaks not of leadership but of love: “We come to love not by finding a perfect person, but by learning to see an imperfect person perfectly.”

I think the same could be said for leadership. Maybe leadership is about taking imperfect people in imperfect circumstances and forging a path towards the impossibilities of perfection.

You might also like:

• When Does Interim Nonprofit Leadership Make Sense?
• Five Internal Controls for the Very Small Nonprofit
• A Nonprofit Partnership: How One Board Member Connected Two Organizations and Boosted Both
• Innovative Leadership — Culture Doesn’t Have to Eat Strategy: Tending to Human Factors During Strategic Planning
• Insider Newsletters: An Easy Way to Keep Your Board in the Loop and Engaged

 

You made it to the end! Please share this article!

Let’s help other nonprofit leaders succeed! Consider sharing this article with your friends and colleagues via email or social media.