Delusional Altruism

4You Have Too Many Steps

Guess what? In philanthropy, it turns out we are the bottleneck. We clog our systems. We prevent funding from flowing to those who need it most.

Why does this happen? We have too many steps.

Yes, we—including you. You who proclaim to be “streamlined.” You who fund evidence-based solutions and arm yourself with logic models. You who are on the frontlines of whatever issue or cause you care about.

You have too many steps for every aspect of your giving. Too many steps for deciding what issue to focus on, and too many steps to make a grant. Too many steps in setting strategy, and too many steps in implementing it. Too many steps in hiring staff, retaining consultants, managing your finances, preparing for board meetings, and making decisions.

I hope you catch my drift. You have too many steps!

We all have too many steps—myself included. As a result, we slow down our speed to impact.

Let me tell you a story about being a bottleneck.

I've been the bottleneck to my nine-year-old daughter's ability to see at night in her bedroom. For months—OK, honestly, for about a year—she has been complaining that her ceiling light was burned out and asking if I could please replace the bulb. Every time she complained, I would think about the steps I'd need to take to meet her request.

1. Research all those newfangled light bulbs before I buy more (do I want LED or incandescent or halogen? And what is a “lumen” anyway?).
2. Install the new overhead light fixture we bought for ...