People would be truly surprised to learn that the world of the non-profit can be every bit as treacherous and backstabbing – if not more – than the corporate world.
I’ve worked in Corporate America. What I found was gossip galore, two-faced people, jealousies, and people jockeying for position and fighting for promotions. A lot of it boils down to petty politics and if you know how to navigate those waters then it’s not that bad.
I have also run a couple non-profits and one would think that non-profits operate with unquestionable ethical standards. We assume that because we believe that the profit is taken out of the equation. Both assumptions are wrong. Monies are still part of the non-profit arena and unfortunately, there are people who are not very honest when filing their taxes. We have always been transparent from day one. We can document every dollar received and every dollar spent since launching back in 2003 to present day. We’ve been told we are too transparent. Maybe so, but I’d rather be open and transparent than have our integrity compromised.
Heck, one organization even listed on their filings as giving me thousands of dollars personally, which was not true. I found out from my accountant who asked why I did not claim the monies. She told me I would need to file and pay or get audited. She knows me well enough that I don’t mess with even a penny when it comes to the IRS, be it business or personal. When I brought this to the attention of the nonprofit’s leader, she said she didn’t understand how I even discovered it when my name was misspelled. She went on to say I shouldn’t be making a big deal about it. What….?? No apology, no acknowledgment, no we’re sorry, we’ll fix it, nope… I said, “You need to amend your filing ASAP.” Her response was not good and sadly gossip started, backstabbing, lies, and hurt for myself personally and our organization – not theirs – even though we did nothing wrong. Still to this day, no apology and only pit bull looks that could kill.
The non-profits are a different breed. If corporations are likened to a poodle, then the non-profits are a pit bull. There’s intense competition for grants, funding, corporate sponsors, etc. and it can get dog-eat-dog. It seems there’s more backstabbing that goes on and I have personally experienced the stealing of programs and events, others mimicking our every step, other entities stealing our mission statements and even our name.
And then there’s the donors. These are people who want to donate to a worthy cause and it’s their choice where they give their almighty dollar. So if a donor comes up to you after an event and introduces themselves to you and say they enjoyed the event and they want to donate or sponsor an event, what are you supposed to do? You tell them about the organization and your goals and so forth. When they see the good work their monies have done, they continue to give generously and we cannot thank them enough. Our team works hard to provide services and to show our donors that our mission, vision and values are continuing to provide hopeful healing to all survivors; without drama and politics.
There are certain individuals who believe I stole their donor. Nothing could be further from the truth. We have had that done to us, but never, not once have we done that to anyone because it’s not right.
I don’t want to play tug of war with anyone. They can have the grants, funding, gossip, drama and politics and we will continue to trust that we are doing what we are doing for the right reasons. No awards, recognitions, percentages or funding will ever change that.
We know that with faith there is hope and with hope there is healing…
See below… In the Final Analysis by Mother Teresa.
P.W.
Patricia Wenskunas
The Final Analysis
People are often unreasonable, illogical and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives; Be kind anyway.
If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies; Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you; Be honest and frank anyway.
What you spend years building, someone may destroy overnight; Build anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness, they will be jealous; Be happy anyway.
The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow; Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have, and it may not be enough. Give the world the best you’ve got anyway.
You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and God; it was never between you and them anyway.
Mother Theresa
