{"id":933,"date":"2024-06-11T12:55:22","date_gmt":"2024-06-11T12:55:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/?p=933"},"modified":"2024-06-11T12:55:31","modified_gmt":"2024-06-11T12:55:31","slug":"nonprofit-arts-leaders-to-change-your-organization-for-the-better-you-actually-have-to-change","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/2024\/06\/11\/nonprofit-arts-leaders-to-change-your-organization-for-the-better-you-actually-have-to-change\/","title":{"rendered":"Nonprofit Arts Leaders: To Change Your Organization for the Better, You Actually Have to Change"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Don\u2019t let your dominant response default you into driving into that wall.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
Shame, really. All you had to do was turn the wheel. (\u201cVolkswagen Beetle crashed through a brick wall\u201d by simpleinsomnia is licensed under CC BY 2.0.)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s say you\u2019re driving to an important meeting. There are a lot of complex issues to be discussed. Short-term problems. Long-term problems. Your company, no matter what kind of company it is, utilizes an overabundance of processes, even when things are running smoothly. But you have tasks to do, people to attract (and, possibly, repel), money to be made, and other extraordinary multifaceted tasks not only to keep up with, but to master at any given moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A red Camry, whose driver is busy texting the spouse, swerves into your lane from the right. With everything running through your head about the upcoming meeting, you hesitate, not really aware of what\u2019s happening on your right. Instead of turning left, you determinedly continue forward, lose your bearings, and slam straight into a brick wall. In one nanosecond, all your priorities change. The meeting becomes meaningless. The issues that have caused you to lose sleep for weeks are suddenly unimportant. And for a good reason.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019re in pain. That pain will dictate every decision you make, including those once-important business decisions. It\u2019s a natural reaction. Your \u201cdominant response\u201d mechanism has been triggered, not by the accident, but by the pressure, stress, and anxiety at your company. The stress of the Camry clicked it up a notch, enough to send you into a brick wall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Generally speaking, a \u201cdominant response\u201d is the one reaction that is most likely to occur in the presence of a given array of provocations. The pain centers of your nervous system don\u2019t give a damn about your company. Neither do unmanaged stress, perfectionism, anxiety, peer pressure, board pressure, self-expectations, and the psychotic din attached to the clamor for success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
Alternately, one can try to hide from the cacophony of stress. (Photo by Ryanniel Masucol on Pexels)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is why the kind of radical change nonprofit arts organizations need to undertake right now \u2014 the decision to use its core activities to make the members of its community better off in tangible, quantifiable ways \u2014 don\u2019t get undertaken. It\u2019s not the fault of the longtime leaders; that is their nature. In fact, they\u2019re so used to choosing fame and vanity that they see no need to be a nonprofit organization. These woebegone relics of the 1970s (or the prot\u00e9g\u00e9s of those relics) are the victims of their own dominant response to a failing system in which donors are their own beneficiaries. They rely on their dominant response to the arts crisis, a solution which empowers a system-wide metastasizing cancer of elitism that threatens to kill the sector has been to stay the course. When in stress, these folks tend not to look for diversity in answers. Instead, they value steadfastness. Stay the course. Go straight, even if it means hitting a brick wall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They may not have the answer to the ambiguities that affect every great nonprofit organization, but they do know how to react from hitting a wall. And often, their choice in reaction is to claim victimhood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Staying a fatal course leads to ridiculous requests of staff, board members, and community members, and those lead to the metaphor of hammering a nail with a salami, which we wrote about in 2022.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s how to hammer a nail with a salami.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. Put salami aside. Get a hammer.<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Using hammer (not salami), tap nail into wood, increasing strength of tap as the nail sinks in, until nail is fully in wood. Then stop hammering.<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Cut salami into nice thin slices; add Swiss cheese, mustard, and sauerkraut; put between two slices of fresh caraway rye with a cornmeal crust; cut in half; and enjoy on a nice plate with a potato salad, a half-sour pickle, and a glass of Dr. Brown\u2019s Cel-Ray Tonic. If you\u2019re from California, add lettuce, tomato, and avocado to the sandwich.<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    If anyone believes that salami is the answer to every problem, then by asking someone to hammer a nail with a salami, they\u2019re being consistent. Consistently unhelpful<\/em>, of course, but consistent nonetheless, those little hobgoblins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Continuing a course of begging for unearned money for producing art with no impact in mind whatsoever (except for good reviews and a full house, which are selfish, internal impacts) is the equivalent of hammering a nail with a salami. And the stink of the vainglory affects the whole nonprofit arts community, even those doing the right thing by their communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The dominant response to the crisis in the arts in America has been to beg for money to continue to neglect the community. Arts-related money from foundations, corporations, and individuals continues to be on the wane (because little proof of core charity has been offered), so there have been recent movements to scrounge from the government coffers. Arts leaders don\u2019t change, however. The most repugnant of those leaders will only burn through whatever money they are granted (as they did with extensive COVID funding \u2013 not all arts organizations, but way too many) and beg again and again with no concept of what it means to run a charity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    If they had only relaxed during the stress and turned the Beetle to the left, even a little bit, they wouldn\u2019t have careened full-speed into a brick wall. In this case, \u201cturning the wheel\u201d is the analogy for \u201cembracing a charitable outcome.\u201d When you do good for those that need it, rather than those that simply want it, you\u2019re on the right track.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    But of course that can\u2019t happen without the intent<\/em> to do so. You\u2019ve got to want <\/em>to use your art in charitable terms. If you don\u2019t, sadly, you\u2019re among the majority of the current leaders. Merely putting on a charade of a charitable program (usually on the side, to raise money from foundations) won\u2019t cut it. Why would you drag your feet in the cause of helping the people of your community?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    Make a difference. Don\u2019t just put together a show. That\u2019s what you\u2019re your community members (and funders) have been telling you for years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Foot-draggers weren\u2019t raised that way. They don\u2019t know how to be a charity and they don\u2019t want to learn, either. In their minds, everyone else is causing them to fail. So, they don\u2019t change \u2014 the leaders nor their organizations. And another beetle hits the bricks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n\n\n\n

    Just a reminder: no one cares about your June 30 fiscal year end except you. Donors look at these “fiscal year-ends” as gratuitous asks, disconnected from their own lives and giving patterns, and an arbitrary\/irrelevant reason for giving. Yet another case of it being all about you, not them. In the meantime, for success in the field, pick up a copy of this book by clicking on the ad below. It’ll change your perspective for the better.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Generally speaking, a \u201cdominant response\u201d is the one reaction that is most likely to occur in the presence of a given array of provocations.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":934,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21,20,100,40,23,19,18,17,99],"tags":[50],"class_list":{"0":"post-933","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arts-and-culture","8":"category-board-of-directors","9":"category-book-recommendation","10":"category-change","11":"category-executive-director","12":"category-leadership","13":"category-nonprofit","14":"category-nonprofit-arts-organizations","15":"category-scene-change","16":"tag-nonprofit-management","17":"entry"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/car-vs-wall2.jpg?fit=2019%2C1189&ssl=1","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1517,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/2025\/10\/07\/a-punchy-outspoken-argument-for-how-nonprofit-arts-organizations-should-be-run\/","url_meta":{"origin":933,"position":0},"title":"“A PUNCHY, OUTSPOKEN ARGUMENT FOR HOW NONPROFIT ARTS ORGANIZATIONS SHOULD BE RUN.”","author":"Alan Harrison","date":"October 7, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"\"An example-driven new map to success in the realm of nonprofit theater.\" \u2014 Kirkus Reviews.","rel":"","context":"In "Arts and Culture"","block_context":{"text":"Arts and Culture","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/category\/arts-and-culture\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Scene Change, Scene Change 2, and Scene Change 3 - 3 books to improve your arts organization","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/3-book-titles.jpg?fit=1200%2C606&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/3-book-titles.jpg?fit=1200%2C606&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/3-book-titles.jpg?fit=1200%2C606&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/3-book-titles.jpg?fit=1200%2C606&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/3-book-titles.jpg?fit=1200%2C606&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1683,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/2025\/12\/30\/scene-change-3-just-named-to-kirkus-reviews-25-best-indies-of-2025\/","url_meta":{"origin":933,"position":1},"title":"“SCENE CHANGE 3” Just Named to Kirkus Reviews’ “25 Best Indies of 2025!”","author":"Alan Harrison","date":"December 30, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"If you're serious about succeeding as a nonprofit arts organization, you're going to want to pick up the trilogy at your favorite bookstore.","rel":"","context":"In "Arts and Culture"","block_context":{"text":"Arts and Culture","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/category\/arts-and-culture\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Scene-change-3-with-sky.jpg?fit=1200%2C640&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Scene-change-3-with-sky.jpg?fit=1200%2C640&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Scene-change-3-with-sky.jpg?fit=1200%2C640&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Scene-change-3-with-sky.jpg?fit=1200%2C640&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Scene-change-3-with-sky.jpg?fit=1200%2C640&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":989,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/2024\/07\/01\/this-just-in-a-new-and-unedited-review-for-scene-change\/","url_meta":{"origin":933,"position":2},"title":"This Just In: A New (and Unedited) Review for \u201cSCENE CHANGE\u201d","author":"Alan Harrison","date":"July 1, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"\"It clearly comes from a place of love for the subversive and utopian possibilities of the arts.\"","rel":"","context":"In "Arts and Culture"","block_context":{"text":"Arts and Culture","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/category\/arts-and-culture\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Collective-Ink-Book-Cover.jpg?fit=1080%2C1080&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Collective-Ink-Book-Cover.jpg?fit=1080%2C1080&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Collective-Ink-Book-Cover.jpg?fit=1080%2C1080&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Collective-Ink-Book-Cover.jpg?fit=1080%2C1080&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Collective-Ink-Book-Cover.jpg?fit=1080%2C1080&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1647,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/2026\/02\/26\/short-and-sweet-teachers-that-teach-teachers-that-educate-arts-nonprofits-that-produce-arts-nonprofits-that-are-worth-a-donation\/","url_meta":{"origin":933,"position":3},"title":"Short and Sweet: Teachers : Educators :: Arts Organizations : Nonprofit Arts Organizations That Deserve Donations","author":"Alan Harrison","date":"February 26, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Back to the basics, because the message is only going so far. It\u2019s up to you to save the sector from its own worst instincts.","rel":"","context":"In "Arts and Culture"","block_context":{"text":"Arts and Culture","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/category\/arts-and-culture\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/differential-calculus-2820672_1920.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/differential-calculus-2820672_1920.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/differential-calculus-2820672_1920.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/differential-calculus-2820672_1920.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/differential-calculus-2820672_1920.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1790,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/2026\/04\/09\/traditional-news-and-nonprofit-art-youre-no-longer-in-charge-they-are\/","url_meta":{"origin":933,"position":4},"title":"Traditional News and Nonprofit Art: You\u2019re No Longer in Charge. They Are.","author":"Alan Harrison","date":"April 9, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Here\u2019s another reason for nonprofit arts organizations to make that scene change toward charitable activities.","rel":"","context":"In "Arts and Culture"","block_context":{"text":"Arts and Culture","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/category\/arts-and-culture\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/New-article-about-nothing1.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/New-article-about-nothing1.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/New-article-about-nothing1.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/New-article-about-nothing1.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/New-article-about-nothing1.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":764,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/2024\/02\/20\/nonprofit-arts-organizations-just-land-the-mf-plane\/","url_meta":{"origin":933,"position":5},"title":"Nonprofit Arts Organizations: Just Land the M*****F***** Plane!","author":"Alan Harrison","date":"February 20, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Stop. Land. Let the current passengers deplane. Start the conversations with your community leaders.","rel":"","context":"In "Arts and Culture"","block_context":{"text":"Arts and Culture","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/category\/arts-and-culture\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/fixing-the-plane-while-flying.jpg?fit=1200%2C709&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/fixing-the-plane-while-flying.jpg?fit=1200%2C709&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/fixing-the-plane-while-flying.jpg?fit=1200%2C709&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/fixing-the-plane-while-flying.jpg?fit=1200%2C709&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/fixing-the-plane-while-flying.jpg?fit=1200%2C709&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/933","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=933"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/933\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":940,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/933\/revisions\/940"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/934"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=933"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=933"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=933"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}