{"id":390,"date":"2022-08-29T20:46:00","date_gmt":"2022-08-29T20:46:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/upliftindy.org\/?p=390"},"modified":"2022-11-02T21:03:43","modified_gmt":"2022-11-02T21:03:43","slug":"get-ready-for-tough-times-nonprofits-must-prepare-now-as-risk-of-recession-grows","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/upliftindy.org\/index.php\/2022\/08\/29\/get-ready-for-tough-times-nonprofits-must-prepare-now-as-risk-of-recession-grows\/","title":{"rendered":"Get ready for tough times: Nonprofits must prepare now as risk of recession grows."},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Get ready for tough times: Nonprofits must prepare now as risk of recession grows.<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

A friend of mine, Steve, is an accomplished surfer who has traveled the world to catch the biggest and best waves on the planet. Steve recently shared with me a couple of principles of surfing that apply to many areas of life, including leadership of nonprofit organizations in challenging times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A growing number of economists have forecast a recession in the United States in the next year. \u201cA recession at the end of the year or early next year is better than even money,\u201d Maurice Obstfeld, a former chief economist at the International Monetary Fund, told MarketWatch<\/a> in August.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, how do those of us immersed in leading nonprofit organizations get ready?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steve\u2019s first principle is that the toughest waves make for the best rides. If you don\u2019t want to take on the big ones, stay home. Or stay on the beach. But if you want to experience the thrill and satisfaction of rising to a big challenge, you need to accept the rough waters \u2013 because that\u2019s where we\u2019re best able to accomplish our mission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The second principle, Steve notes, is that getting ready for those big waves isn\u2019t as simple as grabbing a board, turning on the Beach Boys and hitting the beach. \u201cYou have to plan and prepare for the ride of a lifetime,\u201d Steve says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s certainly true in nonprofit leadership as well. Now is the time to prepare for the choppy waters ahead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2008 and 2009, a big and dangerous wave \u2013 the Great Recession \u2013 hit us at Shepherd Community Center, as it did everyone else. Unemployment in the recession, which lasted 18 months, rose from less than 5% to more than 10%. <\/a> The Standard & Poor\u2019s 500 lost almost 52% of its value. Housing values fell by 33% and 10 million Americans lost their homes<\/a> to foreclosure during the recession.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Shepherd, and other nonprofits, it was both a scary time and a critically important time to fulfill our mission, which is to break the cycle of poverty on the near Eastside of Indianapolis. When people have needs \u2013 feeding their families, educating their children, or finding safe and affordable housing \u2013 we respond. In the depths of the Great Recession, our neighbors\u2019 needs became more urgent than ever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet, as with other nonprofits and ministries, we rely on the generosity of churches, individual donors, and corporate and community partners to fulfill our mission as well as to pay our staff and meet other obligations. So, we had to ask our donors for more support precisely as their own budgets were squeezed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our theme for the year was \u201cThrive in \u201909.\u201d And we did. In fact, that year became the ride of a lifetime as the community stepped up in spectacular ways to help neighbors in need.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, with the growing potential for another recession, the fundamentals that guided Shepherd and other organizations through hard times in the past still apply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are a few steps to take in preparation for whatever storms may come:<\/p>\n\n\n\n