For Lakeside, June is a month that is replete with celebrations. Since we have four schools there are four different graduation and student awards events. This year we have 3 long-standing staff members who are retiring, and they will have retirement events in honor of their long tenure.  We also have an all-staff picnic day […]

There have been multiple issues facing non-profits in the past several years. The devastating pandemic has had significant impact that has left both clients and staff struggling. Historically many non-profits have struggled with limited funding, resources and staff to achieve their mission. The Great Resignation has also reached into our non-profit world recently and many […]

It is always interesting to see how individuals perceive leaders. For some there is often a level of distrust because of difficult past experiences or perceptions about those who have provided leadership in their lives. Leaders who are caught up in their own hierarchy and/or authority can appear distant and non-caring. Those perceptions can make […]

My background before I was hired at Lakeside was in small business. As a young man I was privileged to work my way through a small brokerage firm, starting out as a typist to becoming the manager of the business. In that process I learned much about the business world in marketing, customer service, administration, […]

I have great empathy for non-profit leaders in newly developing organizations as they strive to make progress, develop projects and move their organization forward in their mission. In my early days of Lakeside I found myself working through some very intense financial struggles as I attempted to bring us to a more professional posture in […]

One of the common criticisms of leaders within a system or organization is that it feels like they are disconnected from their staff. I think that critique gave rise to the popular television show “Undercover Boss.” It is a show where CEO’s of various companies disguise themselves and actually work alongside of their workers to […]

Last week I bumped into one of my new board members. He told me that he realized he needed to take some of our trauma training in order for him to be an informed board member.  I walked away gratified that we had emphasized the importance of our training to the extent that he volunteered […]

Most non-profit leaders go into the profession to change the world for the better. We have a strong sense of a meaningful mission! We strive to create new ways to think about some of our social problems. We want to bring opportunities to individuals that they may never have had. We believe in our role […]

As a leader, have you ever considered how to create a positive physical environment for your mission? I remember when I entered my first day at Lakeside how discouraged I was at the physical environment. Like many non-profits the facilities lacked any sense of order. Our furniture for our school and reception areas was not […]

I was at a leadership seminar many years ago where the presenters offered the idea of incorporating sociological grace within organizations. I was familiar with the concept of how God is so gracious to us as people, but I had never considered that as a potential for a leadership model that could be a vital […]