"Going to the balcony" is a technique that’s coming in handy these days. The idea is that when you’re dizzy and distraught, caught up in the awfulness of the state of the world or just a bad last conversation: imagine yourself as an actor in a play on a stage. Then take yourself up to the balcony and look down at the play unfolding. From that vantage point it’s easier to see, for instance, that an angry person is really more confused than angry, or that we need to drive a plot turn in the play, or that this problem, too, will pass.
Going to the balcony can also help us recognize the everyday drama in our nonprofits. If you think of your nonprofit as a village, take a look at the drama of village life from the balcony. You might get a fresh appreciation for the volunteer gardener, the intake worker, the bookkeeper, the stagehand, the development associate and others who take part in the great dramas that quietly unfold in the world.
Contest! Next issue we celebrate Blue Avocado’s one-year anniversary with a competition: Send us a funny story, anecdote or picture about Life on "Planet 501c3" and the winner gets a case of fresh avocados! Click here to send in your story or photo or to let us know anything you’d like to see us address in our First Year Anniversary issue. In that issue we’ll also let you know more about upcoming plans, what we’re struggling to accomplish, and how you can be involved. See you at the anniversary party next issue . . . Jan Masaoka
Thank you for the refreshing thought on stepping back and looking at the play unfolding…great idea! It does give an opportunity to look at circumstances differently. Regards, Patty
Thanks for using that great "going to the balcony" line, which is a
memorable chapter from Heifetz & Linsky’s "Leadership on the Line"
from Harvard Press. Tying that quote to commemoration illustrates why
history is such a terrific balcony.
Best,
David Grabitske