Book Bites December 2024: Traction

Why This Book:

During my job search, many postings listed “has an entrepreneurial spirit” as a skill. Funny enough, when out at dinner with a group of amazing Leaders of Volunteers, the “entrepreneurial spirit” theme came up again. It was said that we, as leaders of volunteer engagement should approach building our departments like entrepreneurs build their businesses; with intentional small, yet efficient steps. We, often more than not, are a department of one leading a team of many. It’s almost like we are running our own little small businesses. With the number of hats we wear, we have to think about so many things. This book describes what the entrepreneur spirit is, and how using its principles can greatly benefit and turn around a volunteer program.

Book Background Information:

This book is 227 pages, a practical read and is available on audiobook. The author focuses on helping entrepreneurs and leaders maximize their freedom, creativity, and impact through teaching.

You Should Read This Book If:

• You lead a department
• You are an independent volunteer management consultant
• You want to know what the Entrepreneurial Spirit is
• You have to work with a budget at work
• There is a lack of accountability at your job
• You want to learn how to delegate more efficiently

Who Should You Gift This Book To:

• Any leader you know, particularly in volunteer engagement.
• Any Entrepreneur You Know
• Any Consultant You Know
• You

Chapter 1: The Entrepreneurial Operating System: Strengthening the Six Key Components – This chapter introduces the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) and why it is so highly effective, especially when it comes to building a department. It defines the six main components that every department should focus on: vision, people, data, issues, process and traction. I love the litmus test at the end of the chapter that asks you to rate your business or department. Based on how you answer, it informs you if this book is right for you.

Chapter 2: Letting Go of the Vine – This chapter addresses the fact that change is scary, but so necessary in order to strengthen your department and grow your impact. It touches on two of my favorite subjects, simplifying and delegating!!! It discusses that in order “to truly be ready for change, you must be willing to embrace the following four fundamental beliefs:

• You must build and maintain a true leadership team. (In my opinion, especially if you are a department of one.)
• Hitting the ceiling is inevitable.
• You can only run your business (or department) on one operating system
• You MUST be open-minded, growth-oriented and VULNERABLE

Chapter 3: The Vision Component: Do They See What You Are Saying – This powerful chapter digs into the fact that when your vision is clear, everything else about your department will fall in line. I challenge you to not only understand the vision of your organization, but how it ties into vision that you have for your volunteer department. Dare I ask, do you even have a vision for your department? Get it out of your head and down on paper and share it continuously with all stakeholders; your volunteers, your colleagues, senior staff, donors, and the community at large! Defining that vision can be easier said than done. This is why I love that this chapter includes a worksheet that asks you 8 questions to help you do just that.

Chapter 4: Sharing – The People Component: Surround Yourself with Good People – Make it a habit to surround yourself with great people. That could mean volunteers in your organization, colleagues who are your champions for volunteerism within the organization or even connecting with others in our vast volunteer engagement professional networks such as AL!VE. If you are a leader and have direct reports, there is a fantastic tool to help you determine if you have the right person in the right role, and how to rectify it if you don’t. Additionally, this chapter dives into one of utmost favorite topics that is rarely discussed: Accountability. Successful departments are so because everyone knows what their role is AND is held accountable to it. Chew on that for a while.

Chapter 5: The Data Component: Safety in Numbers – Data is king! This chapter is designed to help you think about data differently. It challenges us to to think about collecting it and manage it in such a way to help you make informed decisions and take effective action. It revisits the thought that if it isn’t counted, it doesn’t matter and if it doesn’t matter it won’t improve. I like to compare it to the phrase, similarly to a camera…..what you focus on is what develops. Included in this chapter is a scorecard to help you determine what to measure and the order of importance in which it should be measured.

Chapter 6: The Issues Component: Decide! – This chapter is all about meaningful (not difficult) conversations and decisions. It discusses having the discipline and courage to face and solve departmental issues as they arise and not allow them to fester on the back burner. Human nature is to put off making difficult decisions, but in the end the amount of harm it can do to your department isn’t worth the delay. Two of the most powerful lines I read in this book are this: “Your ability to succeed is in direct proportion to your ability to solve your problems. The better you are at solving problems, the more successful you become.” Thus, it provides a tool called the Issues Solving Track to help you resolve your departmental challenges. This. Is. Pure. Gold.

Chapter 7: The Process Component: Finding Your Way – Systems create transparency and efficiency and this chapter helps you to define and determine both for your department. It sheds light on 6 core processes (and goes into great detail and explanation of each) that should be documented and implemented into your department. Additionally, there is a tool to help you curate each process. They are as follows. The:

• HR Process (think recruitment and onboarding for a volunteer department)
• Marketing Process
• Sales Process (if you are in volunteer engagement, you are absolutely in sales)
• Operations Process
• Accounting Process
• Customer-Retention Process (in our case, volunteer retention..after all they are our customers).

Chapter 8: The Traction Component: From Luftmensch to Acton! Action is a verb, the process of doing. “The ability to create accountability and discipline, and then execute, is the area of greatest weakness in most organizations.” SAY IT AGAIN PLEASE FOR THE PEOPLE IN THE BACK! I couldn’t agree more with that statement. Lack of accountability hamstrings so many organizations and they don’t even realize it! This chapter highlights that any good leader understands how change can be uncomfortable, but if you can accept the fact people may be uncomfortable for a short period, solutions can be straightforward and possible. The author introduces, explains and demonstrates two essential principles when it comes to taking action in the EOS: Rocks and a Meeting Pulse. His explanations, especially of the thought behind rocks, are fascinating and made me eager to start using the idea immediately. He also discusses the 90-Day World where you set Rocks and reassess them every 90 days. GOOD. STUFF!

Chapter 9: Pulling It All Together: The Grand Journey – The author revisits the 6 principles and has you look at them collectively to see how they all work together like a well-oiled machine. He talks about the importance of moving at your own speed and not trying to make all these changes overnight…but emphasizes that it takes time. He talks about the point in the process where people tend to trail off and where the vision goes off the rails, and cautions you on how to avoid those pitfalls. Lastly, he provides yet another tool for another assessment of your department now having read the book.

Chapter 10: Getting Started – I love this chapter because, like in all great conferences and books, we get inspired but have no idea how to start. Chapter 10 breaks getting started down into small manageable steps, and even gives you the order in which to complete and implement them.

The Last Bite – This book is actually the perfect way to end the year. After reading it, I made the immediate decision to start implementing EOS in my work as a leader of volunteers. I really wish I had this earlier in my career when I was setting up volunteer departments in other organizations. It really helps to define and give step by step direction on not only what to do next, but what to do first. As leaders of volunteers, we have so many roles and hats that we wear, and in my humble opinion, arguably one of the most difficult jobs in the world. When we learn to stop thinking in silos, even within our own departments, the sky is the limit on the impact and influence we can have in our departments, organizations and the community at large. Let the entrepreneurial spirit permeate your department and see where it will take you.