I think one of the problems is our cultural addiction to prediction. Everyone wants a plan and wants to stick to it even when it is obviously no longer valid. Think of your plan before you met Mama Lucy. If you hadn’t been willing to instantly adapt your plan, you and Mama Lucy would be in different places.
My co-founder and I are very comfortable with uncertainty. We make a plan, but are willing to change that plan with every tidbit of new information. As a result, we’ve been able to ‘morph’ our organization almost daily to fit reality. This drives many people nuts. For instance, our summer program still isn’t set in stone because we are daily meeting people who are desperate to get music lessons for the children they serve. So we lost those better-off children whose parents were filling out their summer day-planner in March.
We have been sharing information with El Sistema-NYC. We were shocked to discover that there are many people interested in starting programs modeled on Venezuela’s, but we are apparently the only ones who have actually started teaching. Some have spent 18 months or more and more money than we’ve ever seen just planning their implementation. We had a plan, too, but knew that there were too many unknowns. And we were right. Our plan didn’t fit each of the locations we’ve been offered to teach. And 30 minutes into our first class at Hill Elementary, we threw the plan out the window.
We feel at times we’re surfing a tidal wave of chaos. The footing is iffy, the view is amazing, and the ride is terrifying and exhilarating. To us, it’s the only logical way to get where we want to go. Stacey, I think Epic Change is on the neighboring wave!

Thanks for sharing your story Jeane! I agree that sometimes the best way to get started with something is to jump in knowing you’ll have to adjust things as you go. In many organizations though, that ability rests on your ability to find people who are motivated within a community to dedicate themselves to change and the trust that donors have to have that you or the people you work with will be able to make the right decision on the fly.

Have people found donors reluctant to offer that trust? Stacey and Jeane have you run into those kinds of fears at your own organizations and if so how do you best allay them?

Certainly, Avi, startup nonprofits and, as we call Epic Change, “experiments” in social innovation may not be attractive to risk-averse donors, and require an implicit trust. To earn credibility, we’ve focused on demonstrating incremental, small successes early and often. More importantly, we’re trying to be a responsive, collaborative, participative organization; when you donate, you become part of a community that we hope will actively participate in creating Epic Change. I believe donors are far more likely to “trust” an organization that they’re helping to create, and to which they feel they have a direct ability to provide input and feedback. I believe trust is also earned when you’ve got some “skin in the game.” For both my co-founder Sanjay and I that means leaving our successful careers in the private sector and making significant personal financial contributions to establish our organization. I hope people see this as an indication that we’re playing to win ;)

Finally, while, as Jeane rightly suggests, our plans are in constant flux to account for new learning throughout this fantastic journey, we are extremely focused on a clear set of objectives. Regardless of how our plans may evolve over time, if we show measurable progress toward these outcomes, I believe we demonstrate good stewardship & earn credibility.

I believe too that there are many potential donors who are weary of traditional approaches and are willing to take calculated risks with their charitable donations. If a young organization with a thoughtful, novel approach, demonstrates early incremental successes, an openness to feedback and continuous improvement, significant personal investment and a keen focus on clear objectives, I believe there’s a vast community of donors and forward-thinking funding organizations that may be engaged. That said, marketing is key, and there needs to be a conscious effort to find such donors and supporters – which is no small task; we’re working on that right now.

What do you think? Do you believe these steps are sufficient? What other ideas do you have for startup nonprofits and new programs to earn respect, trust and credibility from potential donors, supporters and funders?

There is is a common Swahili sayings – “Uchungu wa mwana aujuaye mzazi” which means the pain of the child is known by the parent. Mama Lucy is the one who bears this “pregnant” for a more than 9 month. She knows the pain that is why she is so careful to care of this little child who has only 4yrs old! If the vision comes from the owner the result will be 9 times than it could come from the donnor/supporter. Many oversees have been providing fish but not teaching how to fish. Do you think there is a way for the project to be sustainable in a long run? It is good for the project owners to feel the the pain of bearing children and they would have the desire to see their children growing and bear fruits. That is what Mama Lucy is doing! Keep it up mama Lucy!

Thanks for posting my film. I wanted to let your readers know that anyone interested in obtaining free DVD copies of my film can write me at peter.s.brock@gmail.com.

Also, Peter Deitz has posted an email interview with me that outlines the purpose of the film. Check it out here: http://www.socialactions.com/they-come-in-the-name-of-helping

In Peace,

Peter,

Thanks so much for your comment on the Epic Change blog. I’ve been meaning to reach out to you ever since I first saw your film on Social Actions.

I think what you’ve created is truly incredible. It shows a profound respect for those targeted by traditional aid programs. I believe if we all listened as well as your film does to the voices of those whom we’re trying to “help,” and invested in their ideas instead of holding tightly to what we, with our limited cultural context, perceive to be the “right” solutions, aid programs could be vastly more effective.

At Epic Change, we hold local leadership to be a fundamental core value. I must admit, it’s also the value that over which we’ve experienced the most controversy. A friend and former colleague even abandoned our efforts after many passionate discussions and debates over her belief that our organization should decide, for instance, the location of the school and select the property; my co-founder and I firmly disagreed. We are deeply committed to ensuring Mama Lucy remains the decision-maker on our project in Tanzania. While we exchange ideas and share input, we believe that Lucy is in the best position to lead this effort, and make the key decisions that will guide its success. We are simply investors in her vision for improving her own community through education.

I wish you much success with your film, and look forward to the opportunity to share evolving ideas.

Thanks for stopping by the blog!

Stacey Monk
Founder, Epic Change

PS: I’d love a copy of your DVD to bring along on our next trip to Africa this July. I think it might spark interesting conversation among the parents and teachers at the school. If possible, mail it to 315 Jackson Avenue, Satellite Beach, FL 32937.