Sustaining the Changemakers: Tips to Help Nonprofit Leaders Prioritize Mental Health

As a nonprofit CEO search consultant, a former nonprofit Executive Director, a Licensed Professional Counselor, and a woman of color, I am fully attuned to the effects that leadership challenges have on the mental health of Executive Directors. With May being Mental Health Awareness Month, now is a great time to have this conversation.

Mental health and well-being in the workplace have become increasingly important issues for organizations in recent years. Decades of research have demonstrated the powerful impact that leaders can have on the psychological well-being of their employees. And that implies that the leader needs to have positive mental health.

According to the Center for Effective Philanthropy, burnout remains a top concern for 95% of nonprofit leaders. For leaders of color, the picture is even more dim. An article in Candid states, “Black nonprofit leaders and fundraisers are facing unique challenges, from exhaustion and burnout due to workplace biases and lack of trust to declining leadership aspirations driven by difficult work conditions. At the same time, many are leaving traditional nonprofit roles for independent, project-based work.”

The role of nonprofits is too important to allow Executive Directors and their staff, who feel overworked, underpaid and burned out to leave the industry. They are dealing with multiple and sometimes conflicting priorities such as:

• Managing a Board – Preparing reports for board meetings and connecting with individual board members.
• Managing Staff – Supervising direct reports and leading the team by example.
• Managing Multiple Priorities – Feeling overwhelmed with all the things to learn and all the things to do while managing the learning curve.
• Demonstrating Leadership – Providing the vision for the organization by first adopting the vision as your own, then communicating it regularly to your staff and board members.
• Fundraising and Building Relationships – Meeting with stakeholders and being involved in the community, not to mention taking care of his/her own family once he/she gets home.

As the Lyra Report on Mental Wellness states: “Mental health and well-being is the single biggest catalyst to individual, team and organizational success.”

That’s what we want – individual, team and nonprofit organizational success. But how can Executive Directors protect their mental health to model strong yet authentic leadership to their staff, while at the same time dealing with the overwhelming and often competing priorities they face?

Balanced mental health can improve the possibility of healthy executive leadership. Mental health care must be intentional. There must be beneficial boundaries between work and life. The risk of burnout is too high. Let’s face it, sure there is a lot of work to do, but there will ALWAYS be a lot of work to do.

Here are some suggestions on how to move towards a more balanced life:

1. Be kind to yourself. Encourage and develop the practice of gratitude in your self-talk. Give equal time in your thought life to celebrate what you have already accomplished, as well as all the things that are in front of you to do.
2. Show appreciation. Nonprofit leaders can encourage gratitude in the workplace through daily affirmations or monthly office events where they show appreciation for each other’s work. This is beneficial for employees and volunteers since it stimulates communication about how individual actions contribute to a collective mission.
3. Manage your time well. Make sure you are spending the most time on the activities that only you can do. My mentor once told me, “There are many things that you will want to do, there are many things that you could do, but there are only a few things that ONLY YOU can do – concentrate on those things that only you can do and delegate the rest.”
4. Find ways to relax. Use the margin of time between work and home to de-stress and de-escalate. Shake off the worries from the job and get ready to invest in you and your family.
5. Resist taking work home. Leave work at work. Try to be present and in the moment with your friends and family. Use your downtime at home to shift gears and pay attention, invest in the things and people who are important to you. Get in nature, take a walk, ride your bike, go to a movie with friends, or participate in other social activities.
6. Seek Support. Find a supportive community, such as a coaching group where you can unload the unique struggles that you encounter, especially if you are a leader of color. This will be helpful to your well-being when you discover that you are not alone in the challenges you face. Read more about leadership transition support.

These ideas may seem hard to implement but try them a little at a time. It will be worth the investment in yourself and the key relationships in your life. They may even make you a better leader!

At The Moran Company, we understand the importance of leading nonprofits. Equally important is taking care of nonprofit leaders. If we can support you and your organization’s hiring goals, please contact us for a free consultation to learn more about how our executive search services can help.

By Dacia Moore, MA, LPC, NCC
Senior Search Consultant
The Moran Company
“We Find Great Nonprofit Leaders”