As I wrap up Simon Sinek’s new book, The Infinite Game it has me looking around my world in the nonprofit sector. In The Infinite Game, Simon discusses the numerous individuals and businesses who have played the infinite game, some played it well. These companies learned and invited change that enabled them to maintain their values while innovating for the future. Other organizations and leaders failed to innovate or adapt; remaining focused on short-term, finite returns and objectives. In fact, in the for-profit world, especially in publicly traded companies, this nearsightedness can be all too common when the focus is only on the shareholder.
In the nonprofit world, we are no different. Although, the “infinite game” for us, can sometimes be daunting to imagine. As you know, we are supposed to be working ourselves out of business, so applying an infinite mindset doesn’t seem intuitive. What I draw from Simon’s newest book is that the infinite game requires leaders who are willing to cast a vision and willing to push that vision forward. I’ve often said my job as a leader is oftentimes to walk out on the smallest branches to the very ends of those branches not knowing if those branches will break. I believe it is on theses branches where you push the boundaries of innovation and advocacy. It is always safer to be near the trunk of the tree, both feet firmly planted and if need be both arms hugging the trunk of the tree. However, that safety will not serve those impacted by our services, it will not add value to our employees, and it will not change the game.
I have frequently said that “shelters have been shelters far too long.” This isn’t to knock the necessary services that shelters have offered for decades, but to frame the idea that we now know more than ever about the people we serve and we must apply that knowledge and learn from it. We must utilize technology, advocate for our clients and our employees, and adapt in order to affect real, long-lasting change. In an industry where scarcity, fear, and secondary trauma are common barriers, this is the infinite game. As a nonprofit leader I know we must constantly be looking at the most innovative aspects of our sector. Who is innovating their programs and services in a significant way? Who is running or considering running a social enterprise? What benefits or culture can we build to move us closer to becoming an employer of choice? How are we messaging to our donors? How do I personally remain authentic and vulnerable, yet be viewed as rational and strategic? These are a few of the questions that help frame up the infinite mindset. What are we currently doing that we can enhance and improve? What differentiates us today, and in the future?
Today, while I was out on a run listening to the end of this book, my mind was flushed with ideas and inspiration about what we could be doing over the next three to five years. Ultimately if we can act on a portion of these ideas, we can put our shelter in a better place than it is now, which is better then where it was when I inherited it in 2015. Sometimes to play the infinite game you do need finite goals, but those goals should ultimately serve long-term visions. Simon opens the book stating that CEO’s or in my case, Executive Directors, must be Chief Vision Officers. Like running a business, sometimes nonprofit leaders get pulled into the operations, which hinders their ability to keep their eyes on the horizon and limits their ability to meet the organization’s future needs. This is why a nonprofit board of directors must make the right hires for their organization’s leaders and those leaders must build the internal capacity to allow them to be the Chief Vision Officer.
Simon was interviewed by Inc. Magazine about The Infinite Game. Here is a response to one of the questions:
How does playing an infinite game affect how leaders deal with failure?
It allows them to take everything more in stride. There is a wonderful Chinese story of a young man who is born with an amazing talent for horse riding. Everyone in the village says you are so lucky. The monk says, we’ll see. The young man falls off his horse and breaks his leg, and his career is over. And everyone in the village says, you are so unlucky. The monk says, we’ll see. And then war breaks out, and all the young men go off to battle. But this young man can’t go because of his busted leg. And everyone in the village says you are so lucky. The monk says, we’ll see.
This is a journey. If we look back at our lives and some of the trials and tribulations we have been through, rarely will we say we want to go through them again. But we learned something from them. And we became better versions of ourselves because of them.
It’s time for nonprofit leaders to cast big, bold visions of the future, to learn from their past mistakes and become better versions of themselves to guide organizations through the hard times and into the future.
While reviewing the 30+ year history of the nonprofit I run, there were remarkable stories of triumph and innovation. There are also stories of financial struggle and real difficulties. As a leader playing the infinite game, it’s important that I learn from both the good and the bad to shape the forever future of our organization. It’s important that I play, the infinite game.